Past Voices - Is There an Ancestor's Letter Waiting for You?

One of my many interests is in the letters written by our ancestors. Those words from the past resonate with me, even if the person who wrote them is not related to me. Some of my readers may not know that I have a website that features letters - letters from the Civil War, letters from the later 19th century, even some from early 19th century. Allow me to introduce my website Past Voices.

Past Voices gives our ancestors a voice - and these voices from the past come alive in their letters. Letter writing has long been an important mode of interpersonal and official communication. As long ago as 3500 BC, Sumerians sent "letters" written on cuneiform tablets in clay "envelopes". Letter writing flourished in the seventeenth century in Europe and it was an extremely important form of communication. As public postal services were established letter-writing increased even more dramatically.

WW1 Letter

Many letters on Past Voices are from soldiers far from home. Nothing tells the true reality of war more than the simple writings of the common soldier. These poignant letters from lonely men to their mothers, wives or sweethearts will touch your heart. Some letters will leave you bewildered by their unemotional telling of horrors almost beyond our comprehension. 

1798 Letter to "Honored Mother"

Past Voices also contains letters and memoirs from ordinary individuals going about their everyday lives. These letters provide us with a sense of history, of being there and experiencing life with the people who write about the times they live in.

On Past Voices you can find your roots and hear your ancestors' words across the generations. Add branches to your family tree as you find your genealogy.

You can also learn how to find and preserve old documents, family treasures and heirlooms.

I hope you find an ancestor, but if you do not, please take time to listen to these past voices

Finding Palatine Ancestors

The Palatinate or German Pfalz was subject to invasion by the armies of Britain, France, and Germany. As well as the devastating effects of war, the Palatines were subjected to the winter of 1708 and 1709, the harshest in 100 years.

The scene was set for a mass migration. At the invitation of Queen Anne in the spring of 1709, about 7 000 harassed Palatines sailed down the Rhine to Rotterdam. From there, about 3000 were dispatched to America, either directly or via England, under the auspices of William Penn. The remaining 4 000 were sent via England to Ireland to strengthen the protestant interest.

Palatine Immigrants to New York

In 1710, three large groups of Palatines sailed from London. The first went to Ireland, the second to Carolina and the third to New York with the new Governor, Robert Hunter. There were 3 000 Palatines on 10 ships that sailed for New York and approximately 470 died on the voyage or shortly after their arrival.

Pennsylvania Palatine Ancestors

Over the next 100 years, impoverished Palatines fled from Germany to America - many arriving in Pennsylvania. Olive Tree Genealogy has a Pennsylvania German Pioneers Project which includes the list of ships carrying Palatines from Germany to Philadelphia from 1727 to 1808 as well as names of passengers, Oaths of Allegiance and Ships Passenger Lists.

I have many Palatine ancestors who came to New York in 1709 and 1710. If you are looking for your Palatine immigrants, here are some links that may be helpful

Palatine Ships Lists to New York
 
Palatine Child Apprentices 1710-1714

Palatine Ships to Pennsylvania 1727-1808

Palatine Denizations (Naturalizations) 1708

These are two books you should have in your Library for Palatine research

* The Palatine Families of New York: A Study of the German Immigrants Who Arrived in Colonial New York in 1710 by Henry Z. Jones, Jr.

* More Palatine Families : Some Immigrants to the Middle Colonies 1717-1776 and Their European Origins Plus New Discoveries on German Families Who arriv by Henry Z. Jones, Jr. 

Here are my Palatine ancestral families:

BELLINGER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

DECKMANN aka DEGMAN a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

WARNER aka WERNER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

HOMMEL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

SCHNEIDER aka SNIDER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

KEHL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

MERCKEL aka MERKLEY aka MARICAL a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

MULLER a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

WUEST aka WUST a Palatine German pioneer family to New York

Bigamy & Jail: Rachel Eves & Her 4 Husbands

A wedding is supposed to be a joyous occasion. But for Rachel Eves Fardy her many marriages led to trouble. On 19 August 1899 a lurid headline hit The Globe newspaper:

HAMILTON: Mrs. Rachel Faraday Pleads Guilty of Bigamy

 

The Globe (1844-1936); Toronto, Ont. 19 Aug 1899: 20.

I was curious. I wanted to know more about Rachel. Why was her husband in the Home for Incurables? It was established in Hamilton Ontario in 1890 as St. Peter’s  Home for Incurables and cared for patients suffering from dementia or other chronic ailments.

An interesting tidbit is that her second husband was also a bigamist and was using the aliases of George Mavery and George Smith.

To give Rachel a voice and to tell her story I needed to find out more. A search of historic newspapers found several more articles that provided clues to further research.

After her short prison sentence was done, Rachel married two more times - to Frank Van Norman and then to Elias Slote. Her life was full of tragedy and challenges, from the deaths of two sons to the suicide of one husband and the chronic illness of her first.

Bigamy & Jail is Rachel's story - the story of a young woman enduring endless hardships yet finding the strength to go on, all the while doing the best she can to protect her children.

Grimsby Ontario Historical Newspapers Digitized

MacMillan, Alice (née Ramsay) (Died on 2 May 1935)
appeared in Grimsby Independent, 15 May 1935, p. 7

Great News for those genealogists seeking their Niagara area ancestors! Grimsby Ontario Historical Newspapers are now digitized and searchable online

"Three co-op students, a handful of volunteers, 10,000 pages spanning 64 years, and about 500 hours of labour later and the Grimsby Public Library has a reason to celebrate.There’s a lot to be found in the pages of the Grimsby Independent from 1885 to 1949." Continue reading the article at NiagaraThisWeek.com

I found an obituary from 1935 for the mother-in-law of my 3rd cousins twice removed, Walter Vollick.

Genealogy Tip: Search Account Books, Journals & Diaries

Account Books, Journals and Diaries 1772 ~ 1925

Shoemaker's Ledger Boook

AncestorsAtRest.com has compiled a unique collection of original Ledger Books, Journals and Diaries from stores, schools, and individuals. These old books are a wealth of great genealogy data.
Over the years Brian of

The ledgers can act as a census substitute, letting you know if your ancestors were there in the years between census. They also contain the kind of personal Genealogy data that often can not be found any other way by giving you a window into the daily lives of your ancestors. It is often quite amazing what one can find in some of the books. Store owners might record the death of a customer who owes money to the store. A farmer may note the birth of a neighbor's child. You just never know what you will find.

Brian has begun a project to scan all of these wonderful Ledger Books. Each book will be published as a downloadable PDF file on AncestorsAtRest website so that genealogists and historians can access them freely.

Go to the Links to available Ledger Books listed below

• Staunton, Macoupin County Illinois 1930 ~ 1957 Court Records.
• Orono, Lagrange, Howland, Penobscot County, Maine 1923 to 1925 Store Ledger.
• Maine Store Ledger 1922-1927 PDF files available for download Index, P. 1, P. 23, P. 43, P. 63, P. 85, P. 105, P. 123, P. 215, P. 241, P. 273
• Lubec, Washington County, Maine 1894 to 1995 Store Ledger. Over 4000 entries.
• Lincoln County, Maine 1832 Samuel Hinds Ledger.
• Clear Spring, Washington County Maryland 1861 to 1874 Store Ledger. Hundreds of names from North West Maryland and West Virgina
• Salem and area Essex County, Massachusetts 1772 to 1780 Student Work Book And Store Ledger. MANY LOCAL NAMES
• Townsend Middlesex County Massachusetts 1868 General Store Ledger. OVER 3850 NAMES
• Massachusetts Boston Environs Ledger 1892-1894. PDF Files available for download Start p. 2, Start p. 20, Start p. 39, Start p. 63, Start p. 89, Start p. 109, Start p. 129, Start p. 151, Start p. 177, Start p. 200
• Wheeling, Livingston County, Missouri 1879 to 1889 Ledger Book Of Edward Moore. OVER 300 LOCAL NAMES PDF file available for download
• Fillmore Village, Andrews County, Missouri. Town Council Minutes 1900-1913 PDF file available for download
• Grafton County, New Hampshire 1841 ~ 1877 Account Book Of William Thissel.
• Rushford and area, Allegany County, New York 1868 ~ 1872 Stacy And Kyes Ledger Book. FULL INDEX ONLINE.
• Oswego, Oswego County, New York 1858 ~ 1859 Samuel Stevenson Saw Mill Ledger Book. PDF file available for download
• Oswego, Oswego County, New York 1875 Samuel Stevenson Saw Mill Ledger Book Money Owed . PDF file available for download
• Oswego, Oswego County, New York Samuel Stevenson Saw Mill Ledger Book List of Electors . PDF file available for download
• West Winfield, Herkimer County, New York 1865 ~ 1866 West Winfield Academy Cash Book. OVER 400 NAMES
• Richfield, Otsego County, New York Auction sale 1880 ~ 1890. Found in the West Winfield Academy Cash Book. OVER 200 NAMES
• Lubec, Washington County, Maine 1894 to 1995 Store Ledger. Over 4000 entries, many from New Brunswick, Canada
• Rose Bay and River Port, Lunenburg County Shoemakers Ledger Book 1897 ~ 1918
• Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio 1889 Store Ledger.
• Marietta, Washington County, Ohio 1837~1838 Store Ledger.
• Frederick, Miami County, Ohio 1869~1877 Blacksmith Ledger, Over 4500 names. Online For FREE.
• 1858 Bucks County Ledger PDF files available for download
• Bernville, Berks County, Pennsylvania 1867 to 1877 Haag, Kline & Co Ledger. Over 1000 names.
• Bernville, Berks County, Pennsylvania 1863 to 1870 Haag, Kline & Co Ledger. Over 300 names. PDF file available for download
• Mill Creek Township, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania 1885 to 1890 Mountain Spring Mills Ledger. Over 800 entries with names. PDF file available for download
• Elk Creek Township, Erie County 1876 to 1878 General Store Ledger. Over 4000 entries with names.
• Lower Heidelberg Township, Berks County 1874 to 1903 Farm Ledger of John W Gaul. Many Local Names.
• New Hanover Township, Montgomery County 1858 to 1904 Farm Ledger. Also includes some names from Berks County and Bucks County.
• Muncy, Lycoming County, PA 1831 to 1865 Docket Ledger of General William A Petrikin. OVER 250 NAMES.
• Lebanon County, PA 1887 Heilman Dale Creamery Milk Book.
• Hopewell Township, York County, PA 1890 Tax Collectors Book. (OVER 500 NAMES)
• Schuykill, Pennsylvania Tax Collection Ledger 1913-1922 PDF files available for download Part 1, Part 2, Miscellaneous Papers
• Ladonia, Fannin County, Texas 1908 to 1915 Jackson McFarland Store Ledger . PDF file available for download
• S. R. Turley Ledger Book, Culpeper Virginia. 1896 PDF files available for download Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5
• Wytheville, Wythe County, Virginia Court Records Ledger. ALL PAGES ONLINE
• History Of Tazewell County Virginia Book Sales Ledger. ALL PAGES ONLINE
• Clear Spring, Washington County Maryland 1861 to 1874 Store Ledger. Hundreds of names from North West Maryland and West Virgina

The Bigamist in My Family Tree

Olive May Peer, born November 1898 in Port Credit Ontario, share a common Peer ancestor. Her 3rd great-grandfather Jacob Peer, who I wrote about in the book "The Peer Family of North America" is my 4th. great-grandfather. My grandmother, also named Olive Peer, was Olive May's cousin.

In February 1927 Olive May married Robert Jackson. She could not have known that her husband was using an alias, that his real name was Robert Rodgers, and that her husband would be charged with two counts of bigamy and sentenced to time in jail.

The story of Robert's arrest and sentence appeared in The Globe (1844-1936); Toronto, Ont. [Toronto, Ont] 24 Sep 1927: 16.

This was a revelation for me in my research. My Peer ancestors were always mixed up in something wild - from the tightrope walker Stephen Peer (my great-grandfather's cousin) to the first base jumper Harmon Peer (great-grandfather's brother)

According to the newspaper article Robert Rodgers married Kathie Elliott in 1914 before enlisting in the military. They separated but did not divorce in 1917. That was wife #1.

Later Robert married Cecilia Wallace. That marriage did not work out and they separated but did not divorce.

His third wife was poor Olive May.


September 1927 finds another brief article in the Toronto Daily Star (1900-1971); Toronto, Ontario [Toronto, Ontario]24 Sep 1927: 20. The judge in the case seemed to view Robert's crimes very favourably, which I find stunning.

The Toronto Daily Star (1900-1971); Toronto, Ontario [Toronto, Ontario]11 Nov 1927: 24. has more news of Robert, telling its readers that there is only one prisoner in the Brampton Jail and that is Robert. He was serving 3 months for Bigamy and apparently suffering from rheumatism, which prevented him from being transferred to Guelph.

I was curious about what happened to those three wives (and Robert) so I began my research.

I discovered more secrets including an alias that Robert used when he married Olive. I learned much more about his three wives (Jessie Cathie Elliot, Cecilia Wallace, and Olive May Peer) and the children they bore with Robert.

The stories of the abandoned wives are now told in my newly published e-book "The Bigamist in My Family Tree: Robert Rodgers 1890-1953 & His 3 Wives"  available on Amazon

Funeral Cards - an Overlooked Genealogy Resource

Funeral cards are an overlooked free genealogical resource. They often contain both the Birth date and Death date and can be used as a substitute for vital records. Technically they are not a substitute for vital records as the person giving the info might not have known for sure when the deceased was born or died but they can be used with caution, just as genealogists should use death certificates.

Unfortunately these valuable resources are scattered and there has not been a single repository for this resource until now. AncestorsAtRest.com is working on  creating the largest funeral card database online.

To view the list of funeral card names, please choose a Funeral Death Card by location or by Surname Letter. Please Note: A lot of the funeral cards and Memorial cards on Ancestors At Rest do not have a known location so it is important that you look for the ancestor you want to find by surname.

 

 Choose from the following:

[A][B][C][D][E][F][G][H][I,J][K][L][M][N][O][P,Q][R][S][T][U,V][W][Y][Z]

Finding a Loyalist Ancestor

A Loyalist is any person who is loyal to their allegiance (especially in times of revolt). During the American Revolution in what was to become the United States of America, a Loyalist (also called UEL - United Empire Loyalist) was anyone who remained loyal to the King of England. They were called Tories in their own country but Loyalists elsewhere. Most fled to Canada and helped settle that country, particularly Ontario and Nova Scotia.


Guide to Finding a Loyalist Ancestor in Upper Canada (Ontario) is available in paperback or as an e-book on Amazon.com and on Amazon.ca
Other Loyalist genealogy records you will want to consult are Loyalist Muster Rolls for Butler's Rangers; Sir John Johnston's [Johnstone's] Brigade; King's Royal Regiment of New York (KRRNY); Men From the Turloch Militia who Joined KRRNY or Butler's Rangers; 1778 List of Men From Pennsylvania who joined the British Army & British Regiments who served in North America during the French and Indian Wars.

To find Loyalist ancestors, start with Loyalist History. This will help you understand what a Loyalist was, who they were, what Military Loyalist Regiments for British and Loyalist troops during the American Revolution, and where they settled. Butler's Rangers, mustered by Col. John Butler in New York and consisting of Mohawk Indians and men from New York is one of the Regiments featured. 

You can also read about other Loyalist families:

Isaac Van Valkenburg aka Vollick Loyalist from New York with Butler's Rangers in Niagara 

Jonas Larroway Loyalist from New York with Butler's Rangers in Niagara 

Shainholdts- A Loyalist in Butler's Rangers 

Elisha Wilcox (Willcox, Willcocks) Sr Loyalist from New England with Butler's Rangers in Niagara, and his children Asa Wilcox, Hezekiah Wilcox, Elisha Wilcox Jr, Sarah Wilcox Emmons, James Wilcox, also his son's father in law Gasper Brown 

Finding a Huguenot or Walloon Ancestor

Waloon: people who speak a French dialect and live in southern and eastern Belgium and neighboring parts of France.

Huguenot: a French Protestant of the 16th–17th centuries

The breaking out of war between France and Spain in 1635 caused a large influx of Protestant refugees into England from Picardy, Artois, Hainault and Flanders. Amiens was the capital of the Amienois in Picardy.

The Huguenots had long been persecuted in their homelands. Many families, in terror, fled for other lands after the fall of La Rochelle and Montauban. The West Indies, inviting because of its climate and fruitfulness, was becoming the refuge of many Huguenots for whom the cold region of Canada had no attractions.

Removals to these islands had been going on under the direction of a company formed at Paris in 1626, under M. D'Enantbus, who the year before had visited the island of St. Christopher in a brigantine from Dieppe. There he planted the first colony in 1627. In 1635, Martinique was occupied by a hundred old and experienced settlers from St. Christopher, including Phillippe Casier and his wife Maria Taine.

In 1640 Jesuit missionaries arrived at Martinique where there were almost a thousand French, "without mass, without priest,". Having been reluctantly admitted by the governor and the people, the Jesuits heightened the public dissensions which broke out in the islands and which grew so violent five years later, especially in Martinique, that many of the Huguenots were glad to get back to Europe. Many of them went to the Netherlands, some of them, as the Casier family of Calais, eventually finding safe haven at Harlem, New York.

Those seeking their Huguenot or Walloon ancestors may find the following helpful:

Huguenot Ships Passenger Lists
Huguenot Family Names
Huguenot Historical Overview
Huguenots to South Africa

I have written a book about one Walloon immigrant who settled in New Amsterdam (now New York City), New Netherland.

New Netherland Settlers: A Walloon in New Amsterdam:: Adriaen Vincent and his Wife Magdaleen Eloy - 2nd edition! available on Amazon

Adriaen Vincent, a Walloon from Belgium, made the perilous journey to New Netherland with his wife Magdaleen and their young family in the early 1640s. A former West Indies Company soldier, Adriaen was embarking on a new life. The family settled in the village of New Amsterdam, which would one day become the city of New York. Life could not have been easy for the couple, faced with a different culture and language. But settlers were pouring in and New Amsterdam was flourishing. Within a few years Adriaen and Magdaleen opened a tavern which catered to sailors and new arrivals. Their fortunes soon took a turn for the better and the family settled into their new life. This book contains new information on the family in the Netherlands and New Netherland, as well as details on descendants of Adriaen and Magdaleen 

6 Generations of Mothers

 

Wishing all the mothers I know a Happy Mother's Day!

 

That's my unbroken maternal line of 6 generations of mothers and daughters beginning on the right with my daughter Judy. 

Beautiful women inside and out!  

Questions to Ask Mom on Mother's Day

What a great post for Mother's Day! To help celebrate Mother’s Day, Gena Philibert-Ortega provides a list of family history questions to ask mothers on their special day.

Gena very kindly used a tip from me - Olive Tree Genealogy -  as well as a few other genealogists. Here is the link to her article:

Genealogy Tip: What to Ask Mom on Mother’s Day

Help Dating an Old Family Photo

A question was asked on a Facebook group about this photo. Audrey M. asked the group "Does anyone know how I could try to find the date of this photograph?"

I thought I would answer here on Olive Tree Genealogy blog.


To date photographs, first detemine the type. This is a cabinet card which were not used until ca 1870. 

Next determine when the photographer was in business. Narrow the years this way. A check online for the Maitland Photography studio in Stratford, Ontario Canada reveals that the owner, George Maitland, did not establish his photography business in that town until 1876. His first studio was on Market Street and that is where this photograph was taken. George was in business for about 30 years (perhaps a little longer) so we can estimate this cabinet card photo was taken between 1876 and 1906 or slightly later. 

Searches of available Stratford City Directories reveals that in 1888 George Maitland's studio was still on Market Street but in 1896, Maitland Photgraphy Studios was on Downie Street. Thus we have narrowed the year of the cabinet card even more.

Next we start looking at clothing and hairstyle clues. The adult woman's hairstyle is ca late 1880s to early 1900s but it could be narrowed down even more. Using the reference book "Out-of-Style:A Modern Perspective of How, Why and When Vintage Fashions Evolved" by Betty Kreisel Shubert
I see that her hair with its flattened "spit curls" was in style 1880-1890s.

Her dress with its tight fitted bodice looks like ca late 1880s to early 1900s as well.The children's clothing is confusing me slightly as the boys with their knickers look to be in the early 1900-1906 range. But the girls are wearing the yoke-style dresses framed with ruffles which was popular in the 1890s.  The 1890s also saw huge balloon style sleeves. I'm leaning towards dating this photograph in the late 1890s.
 
Here is a place to start reading up on some basic clues http://www.lostfaces.com/photo-clues.html

4 Genealogy Qestions and Answers

Sue B. wrote to Olive Tree Genealogy with several questions:

How do you know who to include in a tree?  Should I just include blood relatives?  I currently have 2500 people in my tree and it is growing daily.  I am using mostly ancestry and lan-opc.org.uk and sometimes familysearch.org to search for information.  My tree is in ancestry because I can move anything I find there to my tree.  I am not sure if I should transfer my tree from ancestry to somewhere else in case I opt out of ancestry.  Can I transfer all pictures, ancestry records, parish records and documents if I move my tree?

These are great questions and hopefully my answers will help not only Sue but any other genealogists who are struggling or floundering slightly. So let's take them one question at a time.

Q: How do you know who to include in a tree?  Should I just include blood relatives? 

A: There is no right or wrong way to research your ancestry. Each genealogist must decide on what suits them, or how much time and energy they want to put into their genealogy. But there are some things to remember before you make your decision. For example it is often the case that when you are stuck on finding an ancestor's parents or some other information, searching another son or daughter may provide the solution to your brickwall.

Q: I am using mostly ancestry and lan-opc.org.uk and sometimes familysearch.org to search for information. 

A: This isn't a question but I'm going to respond anyway. It seems you are searching mainly in Lancashire England. I would also suggest your branch out and use Find My Past and British Newspapers sites. They have excellent UK records.


Q: I am not sure if I should transfer my tree from ancestry to somewhere else in case I opt out of ancestry. 

A: I would have a backup copy of my tree on my computer even if you never opt out of Ancestry. My suggestion would be for you to find a genealogy program you like and keep your tree there. I like Family Tree Maker but you may prefer a different program such as Legacy Family Tree, Roots Magic, etc. If you google "genealogy programs for family tree" you will see many results and can read up about each of them.

Q: Can I transfer all pictures, ancestry records, parish records and documents if I move my tree?

A: If you are moving your tree from Ancestry, the answer is "no". You will have to save (download) each document manually to your computer and save it on your hard drive. Be sure to label each file so you can easily find it again. I suggest creating a folder for each surname and putting the appropriate files in there. If you are using Family Tree Maker on your computer you can add Media Files easily to each ancestor.

Here is an example of how I create my Genealogy Folders on my computer drive:

I like to name my files as Surname_First Name_Year_Type of Record. That way the documents fall into alphabetical order and chronologically for each individual. Every genealogist has their own method that suits them.

 I've given you my suggestions. Now it's time for my readers to weigh in with theirs. I'm sure there will be many different ideas and answers and I'm looking forward to reading them.

Losing 8 Generations of Ancestors

I just lost 8 (EIGHT) generations from our family tree......

Extracts of church records I found many dozens of years ago for a marriage in 1785 in England did not give all the data! I had previously found that my 5th great-grandfather Philip Hubbard married in St. Lawrence, Thanet, Kent England on 17 October 1787 to Elizabeth Moses. At least that is what the transcribed records listed. No image was available to compare at that time.

Then I found a scan of the original church register which showed his wife to be Elizabeth Moses Burbank, widow. Since I was curious about this first husband, I did more research and found that on 03 June 1785 Elizabeth Moses Hinds, spinster married Richard Burbank, a widower.

Thus it turned out that my 5th great grandmother was not Elizabeth Moses but Elizabeth Moses Hinds. Hinds was her maiden name, not a previous married name, and Moses was her middle name.

So my 8 generations of research going back for the lineage of Elizabeth Moses was wrong. Ouch. And yet...  I can have the fun of searching a new set of ancestors

In fact I have now found the baptism record of Elizabeth Moses Hinds in February 1764 to parents John and Mildred.

 

It pays to review old research!!! It also pays to be cautious accepting a transcript or extract without viewing the original.

Snce discovering the new surname, I researched the line back several generations in England, and wrote a small (28 page) book about the family. I originally wrote this book to share with my adult children but ended up also putting it on Amazon for sale.


The Hinds Family of Kent England

List Price: $6.99
8.5" x 11" (21.59 x 27.94 cm)
28 pages

The Hinds families were in Ramsgate Kent England for many generations. This book follows the descendants of Thomas Hinds and his wife Sarah Ammis who married in 1693 in Canterbury.

Was Great-Great-Grandma Crazy?

Insane Asylum Records

My second great-grandmother Georgiana Golding was institutionalized in an Insane Asylum in Kent England in 1864, released after 6 months, and sent back in 1868. But was she really crazy?

There were many female complaints that were mis-diagnosed back then. She was only 24 in 1864 so it wasn't menopausal symptoms. But a scrutiny of the family reveals that Georgiana had just had her third child a few months before being admitted. Post-partum depression comes to mind. Three children ages newborn, 3 and 5 years old might just do it.

In 1868 she was admitted shortly after her 6th child was born. She was 28 years old and her six children were aged newborn to 9 years old. I truly  believe the poor woman was worn out and depressed. After another 6 month stay Georgiana was released.

I did not find her in any other Asylum records but in 1882 at the age of 42 Georgiana died in childbirth. It was her 11th child.

If you haven't checked Asylum records for your ancestor, especially your female ancestor, you should. Below is a link to some online Insane Asylum Records.

Insane Asylum Records