A HEADSTONE LOST FOR 256 YEARS – Now Found ~ The story of 9 year old Betty Clark (1752-1761)

Photo used with permission of "Cheshire."

This is such a wonderful story and so unexpected.  That this little girl is a member of our family tree makes it all the more heartfelt.

Her headstone was located underneath a Keene resident’s front steps.  He was replacing a loose step and found this headstone.  Can you imagine his surprise?

How does Betty fit into our family?

Betty Clark is my husband’s 1st cousin 5 times removed.  That makes her the great granddaughter of my husband’s 6th great grandparents.  Make sense?  If not, here’s how Betty Clark fits into our family.

Betty Clark – 1st cousin 5 times removed, daughter of

Deacon Simeon Clark & Betsey “Betty” Hall who was the son of

Benjamin Hall & Betty Blake – husband’s 5th great granduncle & aunt, son of

Benjamin Hall, Sr. & Sarah Fisher – my husband’s 6th great grandparents

Yesterday on a Facebook page that I follow, I saw a story about Betty Clark’s headstone, which made the local Keene, New Hampshire news, and some of the more distant national news outlets.

Due to copyright laws I cannot copy and paste the news articles here.  However, I will give you the following links so that you may watch the video and read the stories for yourself.

Here is a link to the Historical Society of Cheshire County’s facebook page.

Here is the link to the Keene Sentinel newspaper article.
Here is a link to the video from the news station – you do have to sit through a 30 second ad to watch it WMUR video

What did I know about Betty Clark prior to this story?

I knew she was the daughter of Deacon Simeon Clark (1723-1793) & Betsey Hall (1731-1817). I had her listed as the oldest child of 7 known children born to this couple.  I knew that her sister Unity Clark had died at the young age of 19 (probably in child birth) and was buried at Ash Swamp Cemetery.  I also knew that Betty’s father Deacon Simeon Clark was buried at Ash Swamp Cemetery.  

Ron and I took these photos in 2009 when we visited Keene for the specific purpose of finding out more about Ron’s family.

Ron standing at the Ash Swamp sign.  You have to climb the stairs to get to the cemetery

Ron standing inside the small cemetery

Headstone of Deacon Simeon Clark - Betty Clark's father

Headstone of Unity Clark Durant - Betty's sister

I had also located the birth record (in a book) and the death record for little Betty Clark.  I had no idea how she died or where she was buried.  The newspaper articles related to the finding of her headstone have given reference that she may have died in a small pox epidemic that occurred in 1761.  You may visit her findagrave memorial here #185054804

Birth record of Betty Clark

Death record for Betty Clark

I’ve often wondered what life was like back in those days of early Colonial America.  Of course there are many books, movies and historical documents that give us a window into their lives.  Five of Betty’s siblings lived to adulthood.  It appears that in 1774 her parents had a daughter and named her Betty as well.  I have not been able to determine if she lived to adulthood.  It was very common practice to name a subsequent child after a child who had died.

 

Here is my Family View from Legacy for this family.  If you are related to, descended from or otherwise connected to them, I’d love to hear from you.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST (all related to Keene, New Hampshire)

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY–Unity Clark Durant–1762 to 1781

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY–Ebenezer & Eunice Clark––1848 & 1865

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY ~ Deacon Simeon Clark & Betsey Hall–New Hampshire

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2017 Diane Gould Hall
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY ~ Hannah Wright Hodgman Durant–1750-1797

Hannah

Consort of Mr. Joshua Durant

died 10 Oct 1798

aged 48

Hannah was the second wife of my husband’s 1st cousin 5 times removed.  She first married Stephen Hodgman on 27 Nov 1776 in Chemsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts.  Stephen died in 1783 and she then married Joshua Durant (himself a widower), about 1783.

Hannah is buried at the West Cemetery in Keene, New Hampshire.  Many members of Ron’s family are buried in this cemetery.  You may visit her memorial here #50059868.

I don’t have a cause of death for Hannah.  I do have the following records of her death.  These records list her year of death as 1797 and the headstone is engraved as 1798.

New Hampshire, Death and Burial Records Index, 1654-1949 Name:Hannah Durant
Gender:    Female
Birth Date:abt 1749
Death Date:10 Oct 1797
Death Place:Keene, New Hampshire
Death Age:48
Marital Status:Married
Clerk Locality:Keene, New Hampshire
Event Type:Death
FHL Film Number:1001073

New Hampshire, Death and Disinterment Records, 1754-1947
Name:    Hannah Durant
Gender:    Female
Birth Date:    abt 1749
Death Date:    10 Oct 1797
Death Place:    Keene, New Hampshire, USA
Age at Death:    48

If you are related to Hannah or her second husband, Joshua Durant, I’d love to hear from you.

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2017   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY ~ Deacon Simeon Clark & Betsey Hall–New Hampshire

Both this photo and the one for Betsey were taken by me

Deacon Simeon Clark & his wife Betsey “Betty” Hall are my husband’s paternal 4th great granduncle & aunt.

Transcription of headstone of Deacon Simeon Clark

Dea. Simeon Clark died 9 Dec 1793 aged 70

Transcription of headstone of Betsey Clark

In memory of Mrs. Betsey Clark relict of Dea. Simeon Clark who died Aug. 5, 1817 AEt. 80

You may visit their findagrave memorials here #19037680 and #19057076
 
This is an interesting branch of the family and Deacon Simeon Clark is often referenced in two books I own, about Keene.

A short biographical sketch about Deacon Simeon Clark is located on page 584 in the book Very Poor and of a Lo Make by Abner Sagner.

Also on this page is mention of Jesse Clark (brother of Deacon Simeon Clark) who is also a 4th great granduncle to my husband.


“Clark, Deacon Simeon (1723-1793), and his wife Betty Hall (1730-1817) came from Wrentham, Mass. (whre the first two of their eight children were born) to Keene in about 1760.  In addition to the important position of church deacon he was three times elected selectman.”

When my husband, Ron, and I visited Keene, New Hampshire several years ago, we spent time at the Historical Society, the newspaper, the local bookstore, and, of course, several cemeteries.

It was during this visit that I purchased two books.
 
Very Poor and of a Lo Make by Abner Sanger (a daily journal of early life in Keene) – published in 1987, ISBN 0-914339-17-6.



The other book I purchased was History of the Town of Keene from 1732 when the township was granted by Massachusetts, to 1874, when it became a city, by S.G. Griffin, M.A. Published in 1904, ISBN 0-917890-21-3

Deacon Simeon Clark is listed in this book on pages: 148,150,151,161, 216, 218, 219, 232, 235, 237, 276, 284, 296, 588, 671 and 672.

You don’t have to buy this book to read it.  It is available for download or reading at this site https://archive.org/details/historyoftownofk00grif



Both of these books have been invaluable in learning about the history of the Hall family and all their connections, in New Hampshire.
 
The Clark also spelled Clarke, family is linked several times to the Hall family.  With a small community there are a limited number of families.  You will usually find families intermarrying. Brothers and sisters marrying into the same families.

I’ve done a lot of research on Ron’s family going back to 9th and 10th great grandparents.  There’s a lot more work to do and I enjoy every minute of it.
 

Remember, if you think you might be related to anyone mentioned in this blog post, please contact me.

OTHER POSTS THAT MAY BE OF INTEREST

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY - Unity Clark Durant 1762-1781 - daughter of Deacon Simeon Clark
TOMBSTONE TUESDAY - Dorcas Morse Clark- 1645-1725

Happy hunting,
Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2010-2016   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY–Ebenezer & Eunice Clark––1848 & 1865

Ebenezer CLARK and his wife Eunice are buried at the Washington Cemetery in Keene, Cheshire, New Hampshire.  This is a wonderful old cemetery with several of my husband’s ancestors resting there.
 
We were fortunate to be able to visit Keene, New Hampshire back in 2007.  It was certainly a journey back in time.  Neither of us had ever been to the east coast.  The HALL family and other ancestors from my husband’s side were instrumental in the founding of Keene, New Hampshire.

Here I am standing next to the cemetery sign.



Ebenezer Clark is my husband’s 1st cousin, 5 times removed.  He is the son of Deacon Simeon CLARK and Betsey HALL.

Here is a pedigree chart for Ebenezer.
(Click on any image to enlarge it)


I’ve never been able to locate a marriage record for Ebenezer and Eunice.  Ebenezer Clark is mentioned numerous times in the book A History of the Town of Keene by S. G. Griffin, M.A.  You can go to this website to read or browse this book http://keenepubliclibrary.org/library/griffin-history-of-keene
No mention of Eunice is made in the book.  The only record I have of Eunice being Ebenezer’s wife is the headstone.  I’m sure records do exist, I just haven’t located them yet.

You can visit their memorials at Memorial #22470849 and  Memorial #22470850

Note:  I notice that there is a maiden name of Chase on Eunice's memorial.  I had not been to the memorial in a long time and I will be following this lead to see if it is correct.  I wonder why, though, the same middle (maiden) name would be listed for Ebenezer.  Something is amiss.

If you think you might be related, even remotely, to anyone mentioned in this blog, please contact me!
 
Here are a couple of websites you can visit for further information.

Keene, New Hampshire - Cemetery Inscriptions from Old Graveyards
The History of Keene's Cemeteries and Burying Grounds

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright ©  2015   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

TOMBSTONE TUESDAY–Unity Clark Durant–1762 to 1781

Transcription of headstone: Unity, Consort of Mr. Joshua Durant

died 29 Nov 1781, aged 20

Unity Clark was the daughter of Deacon Simeon Clark & his wife Betsey “Betty” Hall.  She was the second daughter born to the couple.  She is my husband’s 1st cousin 5x removed.  Her headstone is one of the oldest ones I have a picture of.  I took this photograph myself during a visit to Keene, New Hampshire, with my husband, back in 2010.  This headstone and others back in Keene were the oldest I had ever seen and I found it fascinating to try to imagine the lives of these ancestors. 

Unity Clark was born 12 Jan 1762 in Keene, New Hampshire.  Here is a record of her birth.

New Hampshire, Births and Christenings Index, 1714-1904
Name:  Unity Clark
Birth Date:   12 Jan 1762         
Birth Place:   Keene, Cheshire, New Hampshire    
Gender:   Female         
Father's Name:  Simeon Clark         
Mother's Name:  Betty         
FHL Film Number:   1000376

At the age of 18 years she married Joshua DURANT.  They were married on 19 May 1780 in Keene, Cheshire, New Hampshire.  Here is a record of their marriage.

New Hampshire, Marriage Records Index, 1637-1947  
Name:  Unity Clark       
Marriage Date:  19 May 1780       
Event Type:  Marriage       
Marriage Place:  Keene, Cheshire, New Hampshire       
Gender: Female       
Spouse Name: Joshua Durant       
Spouse Gender:  Male       
FHL Film Number:  1000984

On 29 Nov 1781 Unity Clark Durant died, at the age of 19 years.  How sad to have died so young.  Here is a record of her death.

New Hampshire, Death and Disinterment Records, 1754-1947
Name:  Unity Durant       
Gender:  Female       
Birth Date:  abt 1761       
Death Date:  29 Nov 1781       
Death Place:  Keene, New Hampshire, USA       
Age at Death: 20

Unity and Joshua were only married for 1 year 6 months and 10 days before her death.  Joshua Durant lived to the age of 79 and went on to marry two more times.  He was a Revolutionary War soldier.

What was Unity’s cause of death?  I don’t know & have not found a record that reveals that information.  It could have been childbirth or any number of other illnesses or diseases.
 
I’d like this young lady to know that 234 years after her death, she is remembered
.
You can visit her memorial on findagrave.com.  Memorial #19071723.

There are a couple of excellent books published about this area of New Hampshire.

1.  History of Cheshire & Sullivan Counties, New Hampshire, D. Hamilton Hurd (1886)
This book may be viewed on Ancestry.com or at Archive.org









 
2. A History of the Town of Keene from 1732 to 1874, by S. G. Griffin, M.A. (1904)
This book may be viewed at Archive.com or you may download it from the Keene Public Library

Both of these publications are excellent references for the study of that area of New Hampshire.

OTHER POSTS THAT YOU MAY FIND INTERESTING
BOOKS-WHY WE STILL NEED THEM-Which ones are in your library?
HISTORICAL & FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETIES - Great Resources for your research

If you think you might be related, even remotely, to anyone mentioned in any post on this blog, please contact me!

Happy hunting,

Michigan Girl

Copyright © 2010-2015   Diane Gould Hall

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  NO USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

HALL FAMILY - WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

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