My maternal great-grandmother, Mary Ellen (Courtney) Grace, was born in March 1863 in Meriden, Connecticut. She married William Grace in 1887 and had four children (Raymond Sr., Edward, Kittie and Joseph). Mary died on October 2, 1923, in Rockfall (South Farms), Connecticut, at the age of 60.

I recently discovered her cause of death. On the afternoon of October 2, 1923, the Hartford Courant reported that Mary was killed on the street directly in front of her home after being struck by a car after she had “alighted” from a trolley car.

Below are newspaper clippings covering her death and subsequent wrongful death suit filed by her son, Raymond. The case was later dismissed by the State’s Attorney.

• Hartford Driver Fatal Injuries Middletown Woman
• Sues for $10,000 for Woman’s Death
• Has Case Continued
• Hartford Man has Case Nolled

End Note: Raymond (1899-1962), my grandfather, suffered the loss of his father (William) when he was 17 in 1916, his brother James died in WWI in 1918 and then his mother in 1923. The deaths of his parents and older brother all before he was 25.

Comments, corrections and and suggestions appreciated.

Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved by David R. French.

The header for my blog features a painting by American academic realist painter Don Troiani and is titled “Lexington Common.” The painting captures the emotions of the local militia as they prepared to meet the British in Lexington, Massachusetts on the 19th of April 1775. (Mr. Troiani kindly gave me permission to feature his amazing work).

I choose the painting to honor my 5th great grandfathers Joseph Simonds and Joel Viles, two of the seventy-seven men of Captain John Parker’s Company of Lexington Militia who stood bravely before the vanguard of 800 advancing British regulars.

As the British advance guard assembled on the Lexington Common, Captain Parker, vastly outnumbered, ordered his company to disperse. A shot was fired (historians debate who fired the shot) and the British then fired several quick volleys killing 8 and injuring 10 militia. This brief skirmish is regarded as the first exchange of gunfire in the Revolutionary War.

Buckman Tavern – In this later print of the Battle of Lexington (above), Buckman’s Tavern can be seen in the background (left-middle) on the edge of Lexington Green. The initial construction of the tavern was started between 1709-13 by my 7th great-grandparents John Muzzy and wife Elizabeth Bradshaw on land conveyed to him by his father Benjamin. Following is a brief history of Buckman Tavern, which is still standing and a furnished historic site with audio tour and exhibit space managed by the Lexington Historical Society.

The Buckman Tavern is most renowned for its role in the events of April 19, 1775. However, the site is important in other ways. It has been a notable presence in Lexington since it became a tavern in 1713, shortly after it was built. As a “Public House of Entertainment,” the Tavern was faithfully tended by John Muzzy from 1713 to about 1755, *Samuel Stone from 1764 or earlier to 1768, John Buckman from 1768 to 1784, **Joseph Simonds from 1784 to 1794, and Rufus Meriam from 1794 to about 1815 when the building ceased to be used as a tavern. (Source: Historic Structure Report – Buckman Tavern, Lexington Historical Society)

*Samuel Stone, my 6th great-grandfather, married to Jane Muzzy, the daughter of John.

**Joseph Simonds, my 5th great grandfather who fought in the Battle of Lexington, married to Elizabeth Stone, the daughter of Jane and Samuel Stone.

Side Note: After Samuel Stones death, his wife Jane sold the tavern to John Buckman (hence Buckman Tavern) who was the husband of Ruth Stone (who I am guessing was her sister-in-law?)

Comments, corrections and and suggestions appreciated.

Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved by David R. French.

When I started this family history blog, my stated goal was “to tell short stories to open a window on the history of the United States and Canada through the migration of these families.” To date, stories have explored the lives of those who fought in the Pequot War, King Phillip’s War, Revolutionary War, Spanish-American War and Civil War. Tales of those who were the founders of New Amsterdam, Hartford and New Hampshire to those who delivered babies in Nova Scotia or donated lands that became known as Harvard Yard.

Below are a few select stories were the research led to wonderful discoveries. The first section feature short stories and the second section on longer posts that required deeper research.

Short Posts

Dear John from Oliver Cromwell (A letter from 1651)

Memorial Day 2019 – Thanks Pop (A beautiful photograph)

Death-Capture-Ransom (Kidnapped in Maine and held captive in Quebec)

A Hooker Moves William Kelsey (Hartford Founder 1632)

New England Gravestones

Longer Posts

Pvt. George B. French – WW1 (One-in-a-million find in a library in England)

Into the Breach-Promises, Promises (My great grandmother was the talk of Boston)

Walter’s in the House (A single thread that led to the U.S. House of Representatives and a man named Walter)

Anything, Anytime, Anywhere, Bar Nothing (AAA-O) (A great uncle dies in WWI)

Jesse de Forest (A life full of adventure and a quest for religious and economic freedom.)

A great joy is being able to help others develop their family genealogical history and uncover interesting personal stories. Such was the case with my wife’s Irish, Czech and German roots with great stories (with even better titles!) about Czechs and Yeggs and A Sinner, a Hamburger and a Tsarina.

Comments, corrections and and suggestions appreciated.

Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved by David R. French.

Huguenots were French Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who followed the teachings of theologian John Calvin. France and other European counties during this period were seeking to forcibly convert Protestants back to Catholicism. To escape persecution, many members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France and southern Belgium (Wallonia) fled to the United Provinces of the Netherlands. French speaking Protestants from southern Belgium are commonly referred to as Walloons.

The Huguenot merchant referenced in the excerpt above is my 11th great-grandfather Jesse de Forest. Jesse was born in 1576 in France, fled to the Netherlands and died in the Guianas (north-central coast of South America) in 1624. His life was full of hardship, adventure and a quest for religious and economic freedom.

It is very likely that Jesse knew and met with the Pilgrim Fathers (Plymouth Colony) while he was residing in the municipality of Leiden in the Netherlands. He is also recognized as the the force behind the settlement by 30 Huguenot/Walloon families of present-day Manhattan by the West India Company in 1624.

The following excerpts weave an amazing story about the life of Jesse de Forest.

The petition mentioned in the excerpt above is referred to as the ‘Round Robin for Freedom‘. (Translated: “We promise my Lord Ambassador of the Most Serene King of Great Britain to go and inhabit in Virginia, a land under his Majesty’s obedience, as soon as conveniently may be, and this under the conditions to be carried out in the articles we have communicated to the said Ambassador, and not otherwise, on the faith of which we have unanimously signed this present with our sign manual.”

Jesse Departs the Netherlands for South America

Additional resources:

The De Forests and the Walloon Founding of New Amsterdam. By Lucy Garrison Green · 1924

Protestantism in Belgium (Musee Protestant)

© David R. French and French in Name Only, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

In about 1685-6, my 8th g-grandparents Cornelis and Jannetje Doremus, emigrated to America from Holland, and settled at Acquackanonk (now Paterson), New Jersey.  Below is a brief biography details the life of Cornelis Doremus and his link to my paternal family line.  This is a new branch that has unearthed a number of new names for me to research: Van Voorhees, Romeijn, Lutkens, Berban, Jans, Terhune, Westervelt, Bogart, Van Houten, and Matthyseen. Many of the records that enabled these families to be identified are documented in the Records of the Reformed Dutch Church of Bergen, N. J. (now Jersey City). 

Cornelis Doremus and Jannetje Van Elslant My 8th paternal great-grandparents

7^th great-grandfather – Joris Doremus b. 1693 in Passaic, NJ d. 1733 in Preakness, NJ (Married Marretje Berdan)

6^th great-grandfather – John (Johannes) Doremus b. 1720 in Preakness, NJ d. 1784 NY (Married Maria Lutkens)

5^th great-grandmother – Maritje Doremus b. 1743 in Hackensack, NJ d. 1813 in Red Mills NJ (Married Albert Van Voorhees)

4^th great-grandmother – Ellen Lenah Van Voorhees b. 1784 in Arcola, NJ d. 1857 in New York (Married Lewis L. Conklin 1771-1828)

3rd great-grandmother – Maria Conklin b. 1818 in Bergen County, NJ d. 1899 in Milton, CT (Married Rev. Richard Thompson)

2nd great-grandmother – Ellen Jane Thompson b. 1845 in New Jersey d. 1924 in West Avon, CT (Married Edward G. Fowler)

Great-grandmother – Minnie Fowler b. 1868 in Bloomfield, CT d. 1957 in Bloomfield, CT (Married Samuel Spencer)

Paternal Grandmother  – Gladys Spencer b. 1898 in Bloomfield, CT d. 1984 in Hartford, CT (Married George French)

My Father – John S. French b. 1931 in Hartford, CT d. 2014 in Walnut Creek, CA

Comments, corrections and and suggestions appreciated.

Copyright © 2020. All Rights Reserved by David R. French.

While scant information is available, history shows us that Effie MacPherson MacLeod was certainly made of sterner stuff.  Effie is my paternal 4th Great Grandmother. In 1803, six-year old Effie came from the Isle of Skye, Scotland to Prince Edward Island, Canada with her family.

Later, with her husband Robert MacLeod, she moved to Lake Ainslie, Pleasant Bay, Cape North and finally Victoria, Nova Scotia. In 1828, she made the trip from Pleasant Bay to Cape North in an 14-foot open boat.  According to family lore, during that perilous voyage, Effie gave birth to her son Angus MacLeod while in Aspy Bay.

Effie was a midwife and was for a time the only doctor in the Cape North area. According to a history of the region, Effie journeyed on horseback and snowshoes to reach those in need of her services.

Marie-Henriette LeJeune Ross (1762-1860)

In researching Effie, I came across another pioneer midwife who lived in north Cape Breton during the same period.  In Nova Scotia, the story of Granny Ross is widely known and she is considered to be a “trail- blazer in the world of women in science.”

During the early years of her adult life, Marie-Henriette became aware of her gifts as a healer and midwife. The legend of Granny Ross began in Little Bras d’Or, where she cared for and saved the lives of many settlers during a smallpox epidemic. Since she had already contracted the disease, she was immune to its effects.

Note: The source for the map at the top of this post (Carte de L’Isle Royale 1744) is the Beaton Institute, Cape Breton University and is being used for personal or non-commercial use.

© David R. French and French in Name Only, 2020. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

Canton (CT) High School – 1948

Below is a wonderfully story written about Dennis and George Maloney (my 4th and 3rd great-grandfathers) by Jim St. Clair, a teacher and historian who resides in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. I had the pleasure to communicate with Mr. St. Clair and just missed an opportunity to visit with him during a memorable family vacation to Nova Scotia in 2013.

(Link to my post: From Scotland to Nova Scotia – A post about the MacEachern, MacLeod and MacPherson families).

A Young Man in Search of Home – Victoria Standard – September 2013

© David R. French and French in Name Only, 2019. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

The following is a brief story about my maternal great-uncle, Sargent Joseph Aloysius Grace (1892-1918) of Middletown, Connecticut, who died on October 11, 1918 during the Meuse-Argonne Operation  in World War 1.  Joseph enlisted in August 1917 and was serving in the III Corps – 4th Infantry Division – 7th Infantry Brigade – 39 Infantry Regiment (AAA-O) – HQ Company at the time of his death in 1918.

While Joseph’s cause of death is not stated, American Expeditionary Force (AEF) order of battle reports from that day note that “early on the morning of the 11th, the entire regimental staff of the 39th was gassed.”  If Joseph was assigned to headquarters, it can be assumed that he was among those who died that morning. Ironically, a news article (below-left) announcing his death, states that he had been recently promoted to be the regimental non-commissioned officer of gas defense (27 Nov 1918 – Meriden Journal). The use of chemical weapons was deployed heavily by both sides during the campaign. 

The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the largest operation of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) during World War and remains the deadliest American troops have ever fought.  The AEF launched its massive offensive on September 26, 1918 along a twenty-four-mile front from the Argonne Forest to the Meuse River—a long strip of rolling hills and wild woodland about 150 miles east of Paris.  One month to the day after Joseph’s death, an Armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany on 11th November 1918, bringing an end to the  First World War.

The Meuse-Argonne Offensive was the largest operation of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) during World War and remains the deadliest American troops have ever fought.  The AEF launched its massive offensive on September 26, 1918 along a twenty-four-mile front from the Argonne Forest to the Meuse River—a long strip of rolling hills and wild woodland about 150 miles east of Paris.  One month to the day after Joseph’s death, an Armistice was signed between the Allies and Germany on 11th November 1918, bringing an end to the  First World War.

Meuse-Argonne Offensive – September 26 and November 11,1918

AEF – 26,277
killed and 95,786 wounded

German –
28,000 killed and 92,250 wounded

Sources:

The History of the 39th U. S. Infantry during the World War (p.81-83)

The Use of Gas in the Meuse-Argonne Campaign

© David R. French and French in Name Only, 2024. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

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