I'm working on Beaver genealogy. I was able to trace my father-in-law's maternal line back a few generations. His great-grandmother was a woman named Minerva J. (Williams) Bradley. According to her death certificate, Minerva's parents were Heman Williams and Emma Jane Hale (1). The certificate also states that she was born in 1872 in Chester, Michigan, but her parents were born in New York. To confuse matters, however, in both the 1900 and 1910 census records, Minerva gave her father's birthplace as Ohio, not New York (2,3). The Ohio birthplace seems correct, at least according to the 1880 U.S. Census for Camden, Lorain County, Ohio, which documented the Williams family consisting of Heman, age 40, born in Ohio; wife Emma J., age 33, born in New York; three children between the ages of 9 and 15 born in Michigan, "Menervia", age 8, born in Ohio; and a younger son (4). The family members who must have provided the information for Minerva's death certificate were probably confused by the fact that her mother was born in New York, and that Heman's family came from New York. In the 1900 census, Heman himself gives his parents birthplaces as New York, but his own birthplace as Ohio (6).
Heman Williams, then, was born around 1840 in Ohio. Tracing him back through the census records, the 1870 Census finds the family in Chester Township, Eaton County, Michigan, next door to a Nelson Williams and his family (5). Heman's wife's name is given as Jane instead of Emma Jane, but it is clearly the same family. Two of the sons from the 1880 census are listed (although the oldest, 5, is shown as born in Ohio, not Michigan), along with an older daughter, Mary, who does not appear in the 1880 census. Again, Heman lists his birthplace as Ohio.
I cannot find him in the 1860 census, but in the 1850 census he was living in Camden, Lorain, Ohio as a 13-year old child in the household of John Williams, 55, born in Massachusetts, and Jane Williams, 49, born in New York (7). Also in the household are six children between the ages of 8 and 22, including Nelson (who we saw later moved to Michigan) and a 10 year old sister, Minerva, clearly the source of Heman's daughter's unusual name. (The source of Heman's unusual name will be discussed below).
Unfortunately, moving back past 1850, we enter a time when census records only recorded the name of the head of household, and did not note ages (except in general categories) or location of birth. However, all of the children listed in the 1850 census were born in Ohio, so the family must have been in the state since 1828. We should be able to find John Williams, Heman's father, in the 1830 and 1840 censuses.
In fact, there are no fewer than 133 possible John Williams households in Ohio in 1830. Looking at Lorain County alone knocks that down to three. The only one whose household fits the known demographics of the family, John H. Williams, is living in Lagrange Township, with one free white male 20-30 (John would have been 25), one free white female 20-30 (Jane would have been around 19), 2 males under 5 and one female 5-10. This seems like a lot of kids for such a young mother, but they wouldn't have to all be theirs. In fact, Jane may have been a second wife. In 1840, there are five John Williamses. John H. Williams is listed as living in "Carmdon" in Lorain County. Such a place doesn't appear to exist, so I would guess this is the same John H. Williams as above, now relocated to Camden, where we know our John Williams was living in 1850. The ages of the family, however, don't perfectly match those known for our Williams family. Besides, as becomes clear below, John's middle initial should be D, not H.
This leads us to some contradictory information from the local histories:
The "History of Lorain County, Ohio", published in 1879 (8), describes Heman's family under the heading "The Township of Camden":
"John D. Williams and his wife, Jane, from the vicinity of Cuyoga Lake, New York, settled upon lots twenty-five and twenty-six, tract eleven, in 1836. Elisha C. now lives upon lot twenty-three, same tract. S.B. is in Kipton village. John W. and Wilson are also residents of the township. Mary Jane lives upon the old place. The only other living member of the family of brothers and sisters is Heman. Albert R. died in 1878. Clarissa and Minerva are also dead."The same book, though, describes another Heman Williams who is clearly not our Heman Williams:
"Larkin Williams and family, of a wife and eight children, came from Berkshire county, Massachusetts, in the fall of 1817. He settled on the ridge east of the center...The first doctor to locate in Avon township was Heman, son of Larkin Williams. Dr. Williams is spoken of as a gentleman of fine ability and superior professional attainments....The first death was Lydia M., daughter of Larkin Williams, January 11, 1818. Her remains were the first interred in the cemetery at the center. It is believed that the first post office was established in 1825, and that Dr. Williams was the first post-master."
The same source mentions that Larkin A. Williams was active in the Baptist church, as were Milo Williams and John Williams, his sons. Larkin also built a school building in 1818.
This is complicated. John D. and his wife, Jane, were the parents of our Heman Williams. But what is their ancestry? Were they related to Larkin Williams and his son, Dr. Heman Williams? The book suggests not, but the primary documentation is hard to pin down.
Several arguments can be made against assuming a relationship with the Larkin Williams family:
- John and Jane Williams are buried in Kipton, rather than the cemetery in Avon where the other Williamses, the known descendants of Larkin Williams, are located.
- A surprising number of people were named "Heman" in Lorain County, Ohio. The 1850 Census, where we first see our Heman, has six other men named Heman.
- The book about Lorain County implies they are not related, or at least doesn't mention such a relationship, despite many other mentions of the Larkin Williams family
Several arguments, however, can be made for assuming a relationship to the Larkin Williams family:
- Although the book says John D. came from New York, in the census says he was born in Massachusetts, like Larkin. His wife was born in New York, so they may have lived there for a while before coming to Ohio.
- The book clearly has some inaccuracies. For example, it claims John D. moved to Camden in 1836, but his oldest son, Albert, was born in Ohio in 1828. Furthermore, not all of the children listed in the census are in the book, and at least one child who is in the book isn't listed on the census (although they may have been too old in 1850). In other words, the book itself shouldn't be considered more accurate than other types of documentation.
- Sure, there were a number of men named Heman, but honestly, how common can this name be? It is more parsimonious to believe that our Heman Williams was named for a relative, either the Dr. Heman Williams who was the son of Larkin Williams, or some previous progenitor for whom they were both named.
The reason I'd like to know if our Williamses were related to the family of Larkin Williams is that Larkin's ancestry is fairly well documented going back to the Great Puritan Migration (9).
One detail that might help clarify the situation: in the 1850 census, Heman, his parents, and his siblings are living with an 86-year old woman, born in Massachusetts, named Mary Hemingway. She was later buried in the Williams plot in Camden, where her tombstone shows she died March 22, 1855, at the age of 92 years, 9 months, 17 days (that would give her a birth date of June 5, 1762) (10) Could she be Jane's mother? John D.'s re-married mother or an aunt? Regardless, she's the next line to follow.
[Update]: I was able to connect with another researcher, Linda Coltrin, who is interested in Heman's maternal line (see post on Jane Coltrain Williams). Linda has a death certificate that shows John and Jane's oldest son, Elisha C. Williams, was born in Geauga County, Ohio, in 1818. In the 1820 census, there's a John Williams in Perry, Geauga County, Ohio, with one boy under the age of 10, a man 16-26 (our John would have been 25), and a woman 16-26 (our Jane would have been 17). This seems likely to be our family. What really caught my eye, though, were four Williams families in Painesville, Geauga County, Ohio, in the same census. The names of the heads of those households: Rev. Ebenezer, Ebenezer, John, and...Heman. Heman! It may be hard to determine the exact relationship between these Painesville Williamses and our John Williams, but it seems likely.
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References:
1) "Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X637-WCV : 8 December 2014), Emma Jane Hale in entry for Minerva Jane Bradley, 13 Oct 1925; citing Camdem Twp, Lorain, Ohio, reference fn 58285; FHL microfilm 1,992,681.
2) "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMDF-CGF : accessed 10 December 2016), Lizzie Bradley in household of George Bradley, Camden & Henrietta Townships, Lorain, Ohio, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 83, sheet 7A, family 164, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,241,295.
3) "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:ML84-P99 : accessed 10 December 2016), Elizabeth Bradley in household of George Bradley, Camden, Lorain, Ohio, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 101, sheet 2B, family 47, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 1206; FHL microfilm 1,375,219.
4) "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M89K-DLJ : 14 July 2016), Herman Williams, Camden, Lorain, Ohio, United States; citing enumeration district ED 166, sheet 389D, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 1042; FHL microfilm 1,255,042
5) "United States Census, 1870," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHHN-PVV : 17 October 2014), Herman Williams, Michigan, United States; citing p. 8, family 56, NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 552,169
6) "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMDF-3ZH : accessed 10 December 2016), Emma J Williams in household of Heman Williams, Camden & Henrietta Townships, Lorain, Ohio, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 83, sheet 8B, family 211, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,241,295.
7) "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXQ2-364 : 9 November 2014), Jane Williams in household of John Williams, Camden, Lorain, Ohio, United States; citing family 567, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
8) From ''History of Lorain County, Ohio'', published in Philadelphia by the Williams Brothers, 1879https://archive.org/stream/historyoflorainc00phil#page/n5/mode/2up/search/Williams
9) https://books.google.com/books?id=L5GPjobXdWoC&pg=PA1619&lpg=PA1619&dq=larkin+williams+massachusetts&source=bl&ots=ywkeqh9cXd&sig=V0G5AnfPZG7OecwwiQStRWWLoNM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi57-7qp-vQAhXIjFQKHZ0KCzoQ6AEIQzAI#v=onepage&q=larkin%20williams%20massachusetts&f=false
10) http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=28102480&PIpi=49541381
