Wayne County – Our Casbon Journey

Digging into the Aylesworth Story

April 13, 2020April 15, 2020 adminLeave a comment

My last post introduced the Aylesworth family and described the two marriages that tied the Casbon and Aylesworth names together: Sylvester Casbon and Mary Adaline Aylesworth, married in 1860, and Amos Casbon and Carrie Belle Aylesworth, married in 1900. Today I delve more deeply into the history of the Aylesworth family and how their story converged with that of the Casbon family.

I refer once again to the diagram I introduced in the last post, showing how the Aylesworths of Porter County, Indiana, descended from Arthur¹ Aylworth, the original immigrant from England. The superscript numbers in the chart (“Arthur¹”) represent the respective generations of each person. In order to minimize confusion, I am using generation numbers corresponding to those in the diagram throughout the post.

Descendancy chart of the Aylesworth family, beginning with the original immigrant, Arthur¹ Aylworth and ending with Carrie Belle⁹ and Mary Adaline⁷ Aylesworth in their respective branches (Click on image to enlarge)

First, let me say a few words about spelling. In the diagram, I’ve followed the spelling conventions used in the Aylesworth Family genealogy, using the Aylworth spelling for the first five generations and Aylesworth for later generations.^[1] In fact, as was typical of the times, many different spellings are found in records, each spelling being determined arbitrarily by whomever made the entry in a given record. Thus, we see Aleworth, Aylsworth, Aulsworth, and Elsworth, among many others. Today’s Aylesworth spelling became fixed sometime in the 19^th century. That said, the editors of History of Porter County spelled the name as Ellsworth when the book was published in 1912.^[2]

It is unknown when Arthur¹ Aylworth, the original immigrant from England, arrived in the New World. However, it must have been sometime before 29 July 1679, because on that date his name appears on a list of signatures in a petition from the inhabitants of Narragansett country [Rhode Island] to King Charles II of England.

Arthur¹ Aylesworth’s name, seen in this detail from “Copy of a Petition of the Inhabitants of Narragansett Country, King’s Province, to King Charles II,” 29 Jul 1679; Yale University Library, Digital Collections (http://findit.library.yale.edu/catalog/digcoll:1018481) (Click on image to enlarge)

Arthur¹ settled in an area known as Quidnessett, now part of North Kingston Township in Washington County, Rhode Island.^[3] His son Arthur² lived in what is now West Greenwich Township.^[4] Philip³, grandson of the first Arthur, moved to Coventry Township in about 1745.^[5] His son, Philip⁴ Jr., left Coventry and lived in Pownal, Vermont, for several years before migrating to Milford, Otsego County, New York.^[6] John⁵ Aylworth, the common ancestor of Mary Adaline⁷ and Carrie Belle⁹ Aylesworth, was born in Rhode Island. Like his father, he ended up in Milford, New York, where he died in about 1810.^[7]

Elizabeth (Humphrey) Aylesworth, the widow of John⁵, and two of her adult sons, Ira⁶ and Philip⁶, moved from New York to Ohio, beginning in about 1815. We are told that Elizabeth, with her children, moved to “Ashland or Wayne Co., Ohio, or perhaps near the line dividing these two counties, where she died.”^[8] Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find any trace of Elizabeth in Ohio records. She does not appear in census, marriage, or death records. However, both Ira⁶ and Philip⁶can be found in the 1820 Ohio census of Wayne County, living in Pike and Mohican Townships, respectively. Giles⁶, the younger brother of Ira and Philip, does not appear in the census until 1840, when he was living in Prairie Township, Holmes County (immediately south of Wayne County).^[9]

Giles⁶ was the first member of the family to move to Indiana. We are told that in the autumn of 1842 he “moved here [Porter County, Indiana] with his wife and 5 children. He brought 2 wagons, household goods, various tools, grub hoe, axe and musket. Sealed in a false bottom of a dinner bucket was $2,000 in gold with which he bought the farm.”^[10] His daughter Mary Adaline⁷, having been born in April 1842, must have been only a few months old when the family made the move. Giles’s⁶ brother Philip⁶ bought a 160-acre tract of land in Porter County in 1842, but he never moved to Indiana. Instead, he sold the land to his son Ira B.⁷ Aylesworth, who came to Porter County in 1845.^[11]

Detail from a map of the northeastern United States, showing the locations associated with the Aylesworth
family, beginning with Arthur¹and ending with Giles’s⁶ and Ira B.⁷; approximate locations: 1. Quidnessett,
Rhode Island; 2. Pownal, Vermont; 3. Milford, New York; 4. Wayne County, Ohio; 5. Porter County, Indiana;
adapted from A.K. Johnston, “Map of part of North America to illustrate the naval and military
events of 1812-13-14,” (London: William Blackwood & Son, 1852); David Rumsey Map Collection (https://www.davidrumsey.com/)

Thomas Casbon arrived in Wayne County, Ohio, from England in 1846, and later moved to Holmes County. Presumably, Thomas and his family met members of the Aylesworth family who were still living in Ohio. After Thomas’s son Sylvester completed his education, he “taught one term at Mt. Ollie [sic. Olive], Ohio. Then acting under the persuasion of a friend Mr. Ellsworth [my emphasis], who had settled in Porter County, Indiana, and also from his own wish to locate further west, Mr. Casbon came to this [Porter] county in 1859 and began teaching in what was known as the Ellsworth school, which he conducted successfully for three terms.”

The identity of “Mr. Ellsworth” is unknown to me. It seems unlikely that he would have been either Giles⁶or Ira B.⁷ Aylesworth, since they had already been living in Indiana for many years. It seems more likely that he would have been a contemporary who grew up with Sylvester in Ohio and then later moved to Porter County. Two likely candidates are the brothers Elias⁸ and Sylvenus⁸ Aylesworth, who were nephews of Ira B.⁷ Aylesworth. They were born in 1834 and 1836, respectively,^[12] and moved to Porter County from Wayne County, Ohio, sometime between the 1850 and 1860 censuses.

The exact identity and location of the “Ellsworth school” is also unknown to me, but my best guess is that it was located near the north line of Section 9 in Boone Township, near what is now the intersection of S 225 W and W 700 S. An 1875 plat map of the township (the oldest available to me) shows a school at that location on land owned by Ira B.⁷ Aylesworth.

Detail from a plat map of Boone Township, Porter County, Indiana, 1875, showing location of the district 1 school (circled) and outline of lands owned by Giles and Ira B. Aylesworth at the time; from “Boone Township Maps,” Porter County Indiana (GenWeb), http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Maps/BooneTownshipMaps.html (Click on image to enlarge)

Sylvester Casbon would have been teaching at this school when he met his bride-to-be, Mary Adaline⁷Aylesworth. It is even possible that he was living in one of the Aylesworth households at the time.

Amos Casbon was only two years old when arrived in Porter County directly from England (via New York City) in early 1871. I don’t know how or when Amos and Carrie Belle⁹ Aylesworth met and began their courtship. Amos had a hard life in his early years, especially after his father, James, died in 1884. He probably worked on several farms during this time and might have met Carrie Belle in the course of his work.

How does all of this pertain to Our Casbon Journey? Well, I guess the point is that family history doesn’t occur in a vacuum. Even though the emphasis of this blog is on the history of the Casbon family, that history is affected at every point by the histories of other families. Perhaps, in knowing how we are connected through our ancestors, we can achieve a greater sense of connection with our living, but more distant, relatives. The fact that descendants of both Sylvester and Amos Casbon—now third, fourth, and fifth cousins, once removed—share a connection through the Aylesworth family gives us one more thing in common and hopefully binds us more closely together.

[1] Howard Aylesworth, Aylesworth Family, 2d ed., updated and reprinted by Joyce Knauff, et al. (Privately printed, 1984).
[2] History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company, 1912).
[3] Homer Elhanan Aylsworth, Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendents in America (Providence, R.I.: Narragansett Historical Publishing Co., 1887), p. 36; online image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/arthuraylsworthh00ayls : accessed 1 January 2019).
[4] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 42.
[5] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 50.
[6] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 71.
[7] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 112.
[8] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 112.
[9] 1840 U.S. census. Holmes County, Ohio, Prairie Township, p. 228, line 10 (FamilySearch)
[10] “Transcribed Biography of Aylesworth,” Porter County, Indiana (GenWeb) (http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Biographies/Aylesworth45.html : accessed 1 January 2018); citing Mrs. John C Aylesworth, “Aylesworth Family of Porter County,” in American Revolution Bicentennial Committee of Porter County, A Biographical History of Porter County, Indiana (Valparaiso, Indiana: American Revolution Bicentennial Committee of Porter County, Inc., 1976), p. 76.
[11] “Transcribed Biography of Aylesworth.”
[12] Arthur Aylsworth and His Descendants, p. 431.

William Scruby … or, “Aha,” Continued

February 23, 2020 admin3 Comments

In my last post I presented this news item from the Porter County (Indiana) Vidette of
27 August 1891.

Untitled news item, Porter County Vidette, 27 August 1891

I explained how finding this article had been an “aha” moment for me because it proved that Mary (Payne) Casbon and Emma/Rachel (Payne) Slocum were sisters. With this post I want to show how the article confirmed my belief that William Scruby was the son of James Scruby of Wooster, Ohio and the cousin of Mary and Emma/Rachel.

I need to step back 45 years earlier, to 1846, when Thomas Casbon and his family arrived in Ohio after leaving England. They chose to come to Wayne County, Ohio, because that is where James Scruby, the brother of Thomas’s wife, Emma, lived with his family.

James Scruby also had another sister, Sarah, who had married James Payne in England. Mary (i.e., “Mrs. James”) Casbon and Emma/Rachel Slocum were Sarah’s daughters. Therefore, the two sisters were first cousins to both James Scruby’s and Thomas Casbon’s children. This explains how William Scruby was related to the two sisters in the news item. However, before finding this news item, I had not been able to positively link William to Porter County, Indiana.

James Scruby, who was born about 1807, came to America in 1832. He appears in a document I call the “Isaac Manuscript,” because it is a handwritten family history that begins with Thomas Casbon’s father, Isaac.

Detail from an untitled manuscript, author unknown, ca. 1890-92,
describing Isaac Casbon and the descendants of his son Thomas

James Scruby came to United States of
America settled in Wayne Co Ohio
Married Pheobe [sic] Priest to them was
born seven children
Joab William Charles Sam George
are all dead excep [sic] two first named
no heirs left but George’s two boys
Bennett and Olen

James, a farmer, appears in the 1850 U.S. census with his wife Phoebe (or Phebe) and the five sons mentioned in the manuscript.^[1] (They also had a daughter who died in infancy. I haven’t been able to find evidence of a seventh child.)

Detail from 1850 U.S. census. Plain Township, Wayne County, Ohio (FamilySearch) (Click on image to enlarge)

Phoebe died in November 1851 and James died 11 months later, leaving the boys orphans ranging in age from 4 to 17 years old. Guardians were appointed for the boys, and Thomas Casbon was appointed as the guardian for William Scruby. The guardianship was required until William reached the age of 21, in about 1858. Thus, it’s possible that William lived in Thomas’s household until that time.

William’s brother Charles died from diptheria in 1863 while serving in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Samuel also served in the Union Army. He died of an unknown cause just one month after mustering out in June 1865. Brother George, who became a farmer in Wayne County, died in 1882. These deaths account for the statement “all dead excep two first named” in the Isaac Manuscript, above.

Joab Scruby, the oldest brother, became a teacher. He remained in Wayne County for many years, but eventually moved to Des Moines, Iowa, where he died in 1901. Contrary to what is said in the Isaac Manuscript, Joab had four sons, thus there were six heirs, including George’s two sons.

Returning to William, we find him listed in the 1860 census, in Wayne County, where he is reported as living alone in Plain Township, with the occupation of “Shoe Maker.”^[2] In 1863 he registered for the draft in Wayne County.^[3] However, there is no evidence that he ever served during the Civil War.

In the 1870 census, William Scruby, age 29, occupation “laborer,” and born in Ohio, was living in Boone Township, Porter County, Indiana.^[4] Was this the same William? The reported age is about four years too young for our William. Before finding the news item above, I could not be sure he was the same man. However, with that new piece of information, I had proof, or at least strong circumstantial evidence that William Scruby—the son of James Scruby of Ohio—was living in Porter County in 1891. Therefore, I think it is likely that he was also the man reported on the 1870 census. Unfortunately, I have never found a listing for him in the 1880 census and the 1890 census was lost in a fire.

Assuming that William was living in Porter County, Indiana, in 1870, it is certainly possible that he arrived there at about the same time as Thomas Casbon, who moved there from Ohio in 1865. The fact that William came to Porter County at all suggests that he maintained a close relationship with Thomas and Emma Casbon. Perhaps the fact that Thomas had been his guardian created a strong and lasting bond.

William died on 9 May 1900.^[5] His death was noted in the Porter County Vidette.

“Here and There … Death of Wm. Scobey,” Porter County Vidette, 17 May 1900, p. 2, col. 1; microfilm image, Valparaiso Public Library; William’s age is misstated—he was actually 67 years old

The strength of his relationship with his two female cousins is evidenced by the terms of his Will, in which he bequeathed 500 dollars to Mary and 250 dollars to Emma.

“Will of William Scruby,” Porter County Vidette, 24 May 1900, p. 1, col. 2;
microfilm image, Porter County Public Library

William’s death ended a chapter of the story that began when his father, James Scruby, came to America in 1832, followed by Thomas Casbon and Emma/Rachel Payne in 1846, Mary Payne in 1856, and James Casbon in 1870. The story shows how family ties formed a bridge between continents, how those ties played an important role in the immigration to America, and how they continued to influence lives over the course of several decades.

[1] 1850 U.S. census, Wayne County, Ohio, Plain Township, p. 382 (stamped), dwelling 397, family 407 (surname indexed as “Lemly”; FamilySearch.org.
[2] 1860 U.S. census, Wayne County, Ohio, Plain Township, p. 52, dwelling 401, family 400; FamilySearch.org.
[3] Records of the Provost Marshall General’s Bureau, Enrollment Lists and Corrections, 1863-1865, Ohio, 14th Congressional District, Class 1, (L-Z), p. 431; contained in “Civil War Draft Registrations Records, 1863-1865,” database with images, Ancestry.com > Ohio >14th > Vol 2 of 3 >image 318 of 549; citing NARA, RG 110.
[4] 1870 U.S. census, Porter County, Indiana, Boone Twp., page 17, dwelling & family 137, William Scruby (indexed as “Sernby”) in household of Henry Smity; FamilySearch.org.
[5] Indiana, State Board of Health, Certificate of Death, no. 189, Porter County, Boone Township, 9 May 1900, William Scruby; imaged as “Indiana, Death Certificates, 1899-2011,” Ancestry.com >Certificate >1899 – 1900 >15 >image 24 of 3028.

Mary Adaline (Aylesworth) Casbon (1842–1868)

April 2, 2018April 15, 2020 admin4 Comments

I’ve spent a lot of time describing different branches of families with the Casbon surname. For the most part, I’ve tried to work my way forward from the earliest ancestors in a given branch. Today I’m picking up where I’ve left off in my own branch.

Mary Adaline, or just “Adaline,” (Aylesworth) Casbon, my second great grandmother, has been mentioned in other posts, but today she gets the starring role. She was the first wife of Sylvester Casbon (1837–1927), Thomas Casbon’s (~1803–1888) oldest son. Very little information about Adaline’s life has been documented, and sources are limited, so her life story must be filled in from the stories of those around her.

Adaline’s birth date is recorded as May 22, 1842 in the Aylesworth Family genealogy.^[1] She was the sixth of seven children born to Giles and Mary (Jones) Aylesworth.^[2] Of Giles, we are told that he was “born in Milford, Otswego County, New York, May 28, 1807; moved to Ohio in 1815 with his mother and acquired some education there.”^[3] Specifically, Giles and his mother, moved to Wayne County, Ohio, along with two of his brothers, Ira and Phillip.^[4] The location is important, because Thomas Casbon arrived in the same county in 1846, and it is here that the Casbon and Aylesworth families first became acquainted.^[5]

Giles and Mary Jones were married in 1831.^[6] They moved to Porter County, Indiana in late 1842.^[7] Adaline would have been only a few months old when they left for Indiana. We are told that:

years of hard labor against great odds appears to have been the chief factor in this decision to move westward. Ohio had been entirely solvent before she contracted for a system of canals which became out-moded before they were finished by the new railroads. “Pet Banks” of Andrew Jackson’s time encouraged speculation and all greenbacks became worthless. Then came the panic of 1837. Giles migrated west with two wagons, household goods, tools, grubbing how, axe and musket, five children and Mary, his wife. With $2,000.00 in gold which had been sealed in a false bottom of a dinner bucket he bought the farm which is the present family home.^[8]

Giles settled in Boone Township, in the southern part of Porter County. An early county history says that he “taught school (in Boone Township) in the winters of 1842 and 1843.”^[9] This is an interesting detail that I will come back to later. Over the course of years, he, and other family members who followed him from Ohio, acquired large tracts of land in Boone Township. At one point, there was even a village, or at least a railroad stop, known as Aylesworth, about four miles east of Hebron.^[10]

Adaline appears in the 1850 and 1860 censuses, living with her parents.^[11]

Details from 1850 and 1860 censuses, Boone Township, Porter County, Indiana. (Click on images to enlarge)

We can see that Adaline was enrolled in school in 1850 (but not in 1860). This tells us that she could probably read and write. We can also see that her father’s real estate increased in value from $1,200 to $10,000 between the two censuses. This places him among the wealthiest farmers in the township.

The 1860 census also shows an entry for Deretta Ailsworth, age 4. I wrote a separate post about Deretta in February 2017, explaining why I believe she is Adaline’s illegitimate daughter.^[12]

1860 is also the year that Adaline married Sylvester Casbon.^[13] To tell that story, we need to backtrack just a little bit. The 1912 History of Porter County tells us that Sylvester, after completing his education, taught school for one term at Mt. Ollie, Ohio.

“Then acting under the persuasion of a friend Mr. Ellsworth, who had settled in Porter county, Indiana, and also from his own wish to locate further west, Mr. Casbon came to this county in 1859 and began teaching in what was then known as the Ellsworth school (my emphasis).”^[14]

I should explain that in the above reference, Ellsworth is a variant spelling of Aylesworth. So, we can assume that Sylvester’s friend, “Mr. Ellsworth,” was a member of the Ohio Aylesworth clan. Most likely, he was either Elias (b. 1834) or Sylvenus (b. 1836) Aylesworth, both sons of Giles’ nephew, John (b. 1813).^[15] The two brothers grew up in Clinton Township, Wayne County, Ohio, the same township where Sylvester Casbon lived after arriving from England. Sylvester and the Aylesworth boys are recorded within ten pages of each other in the 1850 census.^[16] They probably weren’t next-door neighbors, but it’s likely they were school chums—particularly Sylvenus, who was just one year older than Sylvester. Both Elias and Sylvenus moved to Porter County, Indiana sometime before 1860, when they appear in the same household (Elias now married, with two small children) on that year’s census.^[17]

Sylvester taught in the Ellsworth school (also known as the Ellsworth District).^[18] The name of the school suggests that it was on Aylesworth property. An 1876 map shows two schools located on Aylesworth (not Giles’) land, but there is not enough detail in historical accounts to know whether either of these was the school referred to in Sylvester’s biography. Although an interesting coincidence, it seems unlikely to me that Sylvester taught in the same school house as his father-in-law, Giles, because many of those early schools had burned down or relocated by the time Sylvester arrived.^[19]

However, it is very likely that Sylvester taught one or more Aylesworth children. Giles’ son, Irvin, was attending school in 1860, according to the census.^[20] Giles’ nephew, Ira, who occupied an adjacent farm, had five children in school in 1860.^[21] Also, I think it’s quite possible that Sylvester lived in one of the Aylesworth households during this time. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to locate Sylvester in the 1860 census.

Whatever the circumstances, Adaline and Sylvester’s paths soon crossed, as described in this rosy account.

In 1860, Mr. Casbon established his own home by his marriage to Miss Mary A. Ellsworth, a daughter of Giles Ellsworth, of Boone township. Their wedded life was begun on a farm of eighty acres in Boone township, which he had purchased. There was a small house, but few other improvements, and on this place their youthful enthusiasm and industry soon were rewarded with substantial prosperity.^[22]

Here’s a photo of their marriage registration in the Porter County archives.

Detail from Porter County marriage records.^[23]

It’s a minor detail, but ten days passed from the date the license was granted (October 20, 1860) to the day they were married (October 30). It would have been an all-day affair to get the license, with a roughly thirteen-mile buggy or wagon ride to and from the county courthouse in Valparaiso. The officiating minister, “J.N. Buckharmer,” must be James N. Buchanan, who was the pastor of the United Presbyterian Church at Hebron, about four miles west of the Aylesworth farm.^[24]

Adaline and Sylvester’s first child, a daughter named Bertha, died June 22, 1861, aged six months and six days.^[25] This works out to an approximate birth date of December 16, 1860, only six weeks after the couple was married. Even if Bertha wasn’t born at term, Adaline’s pregnancy must have been quite advanced at the time of the wedding.

Adaline and Sylvester had two more children: Cora Ann, born in 1861, and Lawrence Leslie (my great grandfather), born in 1865.^[26] Then, tragically, on March 5, 1868, Adaline died, a month shy of her twenty-sixth birthday. We don’t know how or why she died. Early death was all too common then, especially for women of child-bearing age. All we have today is a broken and worn grave marker.

Adaline’s grave marker, Cornell Cemetery, Porter County, Indiana.^[27]

There are so many questions left unanswered. Was she happy in her life and marriage?

Her surviving children (except maybe Deretta—“Deete”) would only have had the dimmest memories, if any, of her. And yet, she leaves a legacy through her descendants. I know of 50 living descendants just through her son Lawrence. The number must be considerably greater when you consider her daughters, Deretta and Cora.

I would not be here without her—and for that I’m grateful!

^[1] Aylesworth Family, 2d ed. (Porter County, Indiana: Privately printed, 1984), p. 13.
^[2] Aylesworth Family, pp. 8-9.
^[3] Ibid.
^[4] Ibid, p. 7.
^[5] Jon Casbon, “From England to Indiana, Part 3,” 21 Oct 2016, Our Casbon Journey (https://casbonjourney.wordpress.com/2016/10/21/from-england-to-indiana-part-3/ : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[6] Ibid. p. 8.
^[7] Mrs. John C. Aylesworth, “Aylesworth, Biography: Porter County biographical sketches …,” Porter County, Indiana (http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Biographies/Aylesworth45.html : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[8] Aylesworth Family, p. 9.
^[9] Weston A. Goodspeed, Charles Blanchard, Counties of Porter and Lake Indiana: Historical and Biographical; Illustrated (Chicago: F.A. Battey & Co., 1882), p. 314; online image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/stream/countiesofporter00good#page/314/mode/2up/search/aylsworth : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[10] History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests, vol. 1 (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1912), p. 136; online image, Hathi Trust Digital Library (https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89067919183;view=1up;seq=170 : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[11] 1850 U.S. Census, Porter County, Indiana, population schedule, Boone Township, p. 142 (stamped), dwelling 573, family 573, Giles Aylesworth; imaged as “ United States Census, 1850,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-D1K9-NW6?cc=1401638 : accessed 31 March 2018) >Indiana >Porter >Boone, image 11 of 14; citing NARA microfilm publication M432, Roll 165. 1860 U.S. Census, Porter County, Indiana, population schedule, Boone Township, p. 150 (written), dwelling 1129, family 1096, Giles Ailsworth; imaged as “United States Census, 1860,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GB9J-SZPK?i=3&cc=1473181 : accessed 31 March 2018) >Indiana >Porter >Boone Township, image 4 of 24; citing NARA microfilm publication M653, Roll 289.
^[12] Jon Casbon, “Deete Casbon—a mystery,” 27 Feb 17, Our Casbon Journey (https://casbonjourney.wordpress.com/2017/02/27/deette-casbon-a-mystery/ : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[13] Indiana, Porter County, “Marriage Record Book 2, Dec 1850–June 1863,” p. 458, 2d entry, Sylvester Casbon & Adeline Ellsworth, 30 Oct 1860; Valparaiso Public Library, Larry J. Clark Genealogy Center.
^[14] History of Porter County, Indiana, vol 2, p. 483.
^[15] Aylesworth Family, pp. 10, 15.
^[16] 1850 U.S. census, Wayne County, Ohio, population schedule, Clinton Township, folio. 1 (verso), dwelling 8, family 8, Sylvester in household of Thomas Casbon; imaged as “United States Census, 1850,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-XHRS-K7M?i=1&cc=1401638 : accessed 31 March 2018) >Ohio >Wayne >Clinton image 2 of 28; citing NARA microfiom publication M432, Roll 739. 1850 U.S. census, Wayne County, Clinton Township, folio 6 (recto & verso), dwelling 88, family 88, Elias & Sylvenus in household of John Aylesworth; FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-XHRS-VDS?i=11&cc=1401638 : accessed 31 March 2018) >Ohio >Wayne >Clinton image 12 of 28.; ibid.
^[17] 1860 U.S. census, Porter County, Indiana, population schedule, Boone Township, p. 149 (written), dwelling 1118, family 1086, Elias Ailsworth; imaged as “United States Census, 1860,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GB9J-SZ6V?i=2&cc=1473181 : accessed 31 March 2018) >Indiana >Porter >Boone Township, image 3 of 24; previously cited.
^[18] Goodspeed & Blanchard, Counties of Porter and Lake Indiana, p. 707.
^[19] Ibid, pp. 169-70.
^[20] 1860 U.S. census, entry for Giles Ailsworth; previously cited.
^[21] 1860 U.S. census, Porter County, Indiana, Boone Township, entry for Ira Ailsworth; FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9B9J-SH1R?cc=1473181 : accessed 31 March 2018), image 2 of 24; previously cited.
^[22] History of Porter County, Indiana, vol 2, p. 483.
^[23] Indiana, Porter County, “Marriage Record Book 2, Dec 1850–June 1863,” p. 458; previously cited.
^[24] “James N. Buchanan, Biography: Porter County Biographical Sketches,” Porter County, Indiana (http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Biographies/Buchanan198.html : accessed 31 March 2018).
^[25] Northwest Indiana Genealogical Society, Boone Township Cemeteries, Porter County Indiana, leaflet (Valparaiso, Indiana, 1997), p. 6. (photocopy obtained in email from Steve Shook [e-address for private use], 2 Mar 2018).
^[26] “South County Woman Dies,” The (Valparaiso, Indiana) Vidette-Messenger, 16 Mar 1940, p. 1, col. 5; online image, Newspaper Archive (accessed through participating libraries: 11 July 2016). “85-Year-Old Resident of County Dies,” The Vidette-Messenger, 16 Jun 1950, p. 1, col. 5; Newspaper Archive (29 October 2015).
^[27] “Mary Adaline Casbon,” Find A Grave (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/183537552/mary-adaline-casbon : accessed 31 March 2018), d. 5 Mar 1868, memorial # 183537552, created by “Jim”; citing Cornell Cemetery, Hebron, Indiana.

From Labourer to Landowner

January 6, 2017April 15, 2020 admin2 Comments

When Thomas Casbon, my third great grandfather, left England in 1846, he was an Agricultural Labourer – a general term that applied to the majority of the population, and meaning someone who worked for wages in various kinds of agricultural settings. [1] Within half a dozen years of arriving in Ohio he realized the immigrant’s dream of owning land and working his own farm. I’ve recently come across records that show when and where he purchased land in Ohio.

In earlier posts, “From England to Indiana” parts 3 and 4, I described how Thomas sailed from England and settled in Ohio. I don’t know how Thomas was able to afford the voyage, nor how he supported his family in the early years after his arrival. Perhaps he was able to save enough of his wages to pay for passage to America, or maybe others loaned him the money. After arriving in Ohio, it’s likely that he received some kind of temporary support, financial or otherwise, from his brother in law, James Scruby, who lived in Wayne County, Ohio.

As to how he supported his family, I suspect he initially sought work as a farm laborer until he could save enough to purchase his own land. Or maybe he was able to rent some property. At any rate, his first few years in America probably involved some hardship and a lot of hard work.

By 1850, Thomas was able to make his first land purchase. In this deed, Emmett Eddy and his wife Mary sold 80 acres to Thomas and another man, James Wing, for the sum of two-thousand dollars. [2] The land was described as the east half of the northeast quarter of section 8, township 18, range fourteen. This is located about 11 miles southwest of Wooster, Ohio.

Record copy of deed for land sale to Thomas Casbon and James Wing, October 1st, 1850, Wayne County, Ohio (Click on image to enlarge)

Why did Thomas and James Wing buy the land jointly? My guess would be that it was difficult for them to raise the necessary funds individually.

Thomas and James were well acquainted – the 1850 census shows them living under the same roof! [3]

Detail from 1850 census showing Thomas Casbon and his family, with James Wing listed in same household. (Click on image to enlarge)

According to the census record, James was 26 years old; a farmer; and like Thomas, from England. On March 13, 1852, he sold his portion of the land to Thomas for four hundred dollars, giving Thomas sole possession of the 80 acres. [4] James disappears from sight after this. There are no records of subsequent land transactions involving him in Wayne or nearby Holmes county. Maybe he decided to seek his fortune elsewhere.

So, by 1852 Thomas was sole owner of an 80-acre farm. An index of deeds for Wayne County also shows that Thomas purchased some additional land in the county in 1853. [5] I don’t have access to that deed, so I don’t know the details other than general location.

Detail of Wayne County, Ohio, map, showing approximate locations of Thomas Casbon’s land purchases. Source: Baker’s map of Wayne Co., Ohio (Philadelphia: Baker & Gager, 1856); digital image, Library of Congress (https://www.loc.gov/item/2012592397/ : accessed 6 January 2016) (Click on image to enlarge)

Thomas’ land purchases in Wayne County open up a mystery – when did he sell his property? I know that he began to purchase land in adjacent Holmes County in 1855 (a subject for a future post). By the time of the 1860 census, he was living in Holmes County. [6] I have scoured the index of deeds for Wayne County up to about 1883 or so, long after he moved to Indiana, and haven’t found a single record for land sold by Thomas.

[1] “Agriculture and the Labourer,” Cambridgeshire History (http://www.cambridgeshirehistory.com/People/agriculturallabourers.html : accessed 5 January 2017).
[2] Wayne County, Ohio, “Deed books, v. 34, 36 1850-1852,” v. 34, pp. 293-4, Emmett Eddy to Casbon & Wing entry, 2 November 1850; browsable images of FHL microfilm 420,933, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/search/film/007900918?cat=295246 : accessed 26 November 2016), images 164-5.
[3] Ohio, Wayne County 1850 U.S. census, population schedule. Database with images. FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MX78-W2P : accessed 4 July 2016).
[4] Wayne County, Ohio, “Deed books, v. 37-38 1852-1853,” v. 37, pp. 233-4, James Wing to Thomas Casbon entry, 15 March 1852; browsable images of FHL microfilm 420,934, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/search/film/007900919?cat=295246 : accessed 26 November 2016), images 28-9.
[5] Wayne County, Ohio, “Deed index, v. 1 ca. 1813-1863,” p.111, Geo W. Riffle to Casbin Thomas entry, 1853; browsable images of FHL microfilm 420,913, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/search/film/007900915?cat=295246 : accessed 6 January 2017), image 117.
[6] Ohio, Wayne County 1860 U.S. census, population schedule. Database with images. FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCG3-1MD : accessed 12 August 2016).

From England to Indiana, Part 7

November 11, 2016April 14, 2020 adminLeave a comment

This the seventh in a series of posts reviewing a handwritten family history of Isaac Casbon and his son Thomas. I’ve been dividing it into ‘bite-sized’ chunks to keep from overwhelming myself and my readers. This post will cover Emma Scruby’s (wife of Thomas) brother James and his descendents.

(Click on image to enlarge)

James Scruby came to United States of America settled in Wayne Co Ohio Married Pheobe Priest to them was born seven children
Joab William Charles Sam George are all dead excep two first named
no heirs left but George’s two boys Bennett and Olen

For a long time, I wondered why Thomas Casbon settled in Ohio before moving on eventually to Indiana. Then I read the following in the biography of Thomas’ son Charles, in History of Porter County, Indiana:

Thomas Casbon … determined to bring his family to America, which was then a land of opportunities and almost undeveloped resources…. The sailing vessel on which they all embarked encountered adverse winds that after several weeks drove it back within sight of the starting point, and it was a long voyage before the western continent appeared. The boat came down the St. Lawrence river, and from Buffalo the family continued on to Cleveland. Thomas Casbon then walked on to Wooster, Ohio, where James Scruby, a brother of his wife and a farmer, lived, and having obtained a horse and wagon returned to Cleveland for his family. [1]

This explained why he initially chose Wayne County, Ohio (Wooster is the county seat) as his destination. It’s simple: he had family there! Imagine what a relief it must have been, after leaving their home and country, enduring a difficult voyage, and arriving in a strange country, to be reunited with a family member who was already settled and could ease their transition to this new life.

This was when I first learned of Emma’s brother James.

There are relatively few records available concerning James. I haven’t found a birth or baptismal record for him in England, and he is not listed on any census in England. I eventually located him in the 1840 United States Census for Plain Township, Wayne County, Ohio. [2]

(Click on image to enlarge)

His age was listed as 30-39 (exact ages were not recorded in 1840), and his household included two males under 5 years old, one male 5-9 years, and one female 30-39.

I also found a “James Scrubby” named on a passenger list of the ship Plato which disembarked in New York June 26^th, 1832. [3]

(Click on image to enlarge)

This James was 26 years old and his occupation was listed as “Farmer.” His country of origin was listed as England. These few facts matched up with what little I knew about James, but I could not be sure that “James Scrubby” in the passenger list was MY James Scruby. My confidence was boosted considerably when I found this inquiry in the December 29, 1851 Portage Sentinel newspaper from Ravenna, Ohio. [4]

Based on the statement that he “left England some 18 years ago,” James would have immigrated to the United States about 1833. This matches closely enough to the date of the passenger list, that I’m reasonably certain they all refer to the same person. If he was 26 years old when he arrived in 1832, his birth date would have been about 1806. This is very close to reported age of 45 when he died on October 11^th, 1852, in Wayne County, Ohio. [5]

The fact that James married Phebe Priest is interesting. Recall that Thomas Casbon’s daughter Mary Ann married Elijah Priest and later migrated to Porter County, Indiana. I’m not sure whether Phebe and Elijah Priest were siblings, but they must have been related.

As to the children of James and Phebe, the manuscript says seven children were born to them but only lists five. I’ve been able to locate records pertaining to six of them. The one not listed was Catharine Scruby. She died in March 1843 when she was about 1 year old. [6]

Joab and William Scruby were the only two surviving sons at the time the manuscript was written (early 1890s, see Part 5 in this series). Joab Scruby was born 1835 in Ohio and died in 1901. [7] William Scruby was born about 1837. I haven’t been able to find a record of his death.

Charles Scruby was born about 1838 in Millbrook, Wayne County, Ohio. He enlisted in the 120^th Ohio Volunteer Infantry in August 1862 and died in April 1863 at Milliken’s Bend, Louisiana. [8]

Samuel Scruby also served the American Civil War. He was born in 1843, served in the 102^nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and died in July 1865 shortly after mustering out of his unit. [9]

George Scruby was born about 1848. [10] He married Louisa Aylesworth in 1872. [11] Louisa was the daughter of Eliott Aylesworth and Caroline Priest, (sister of Elijah Priest, who married Mary Anne Casbon, daughter of Thomas and Emma (Scruby) Casbon). George died in 1882. [12]

Here is a chart of James Scruby and his descendants.

(Click on image to enlarge)

The final statement of this section of the manuscript, “no heirs left but George’s two boys Bennett and Olen” is confusing – and incorrect. It ignores Joab’s four sons, all of whom moved to Iowa with their parents and lived well into the 20^th century. That fact that the author knew about Bennett and Olin suggests that there was continued contact between the Casbons in Indiana and the surviving Scrubys in Ohio for a number of years.

[1] “Charles Thomas Casbon.” History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests. Lewis Publishing Company (1912) p. 458. Indiana State Library Digital Collections http://cdm16066.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p1819coll6/id/31510 [accessed 30 October 2016]
[2] “United States Census, 1840.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRJ-1DC [accessed 24 August 2015]
[3] “New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1891.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVPX-G734 [accessed 13 Aug 2016]
[4] Portage Sentinel, December 29, 1851, Image 3 (of 4). Library of Congress http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83035101/1851-12-29/ed-1/seq-3/ [accessed 13 Aug 2016]
[5] “Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center Obituary Index”, Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center http://index.rbhayes.org/hayes/index/record_detail.asp?id=2304084 [accessed 16 Aug 2016]
[6] “Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center Obituary Index”, Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center, Search on surname Scruby. http://index.rbhayes.org/hayes/index/record_detail.asp?id=2304094 [accessed 16 Aug 2016]
[7] “Joab Scruby.” Find A Grave http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=27335862 [accessed 25 Aug 2016]
[8] Holderfield, S. “Company A, 120th OVI, Scruby, Charles.” Research report. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~holder/coa/scruby_charlescoapdf.pdf [accessed 25 Aug 2016]
[9] “Samuel Scruby.” Find A Grave, http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=37988351 [accessed 24 Aug 2016]
[10] “United States Census, 1880” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M83C-6DB [accessed 15 Aug 2016]
[11] “Ohio, County Marriages, 1789-2013.”, FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XZND-MXF [accessed 15 Aug 2016]
[12] “Ohio, Deaths and Burials, 1854-1997”, FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F6C1-JNB [accessed 15 Aug 2016]

Why Indiana?

November 1, 2016April 14, 2020 admin4 Comments

In a previous post I asked why Thomas Casbon left Ohio for Indiana. It seems that he was making a good go of things in Ohio. He owned his own farm. He raised his children to adulthood there. We’ll probably never know exactly why he decided to move, but it’s likely there was more than one reason.

Thomas Casbon migrated from Holmes County, Ohio, to Porter County, Indiana. Source: Johnston, K. “United States of North America, eastern states.” Engraved & printed by W. & A.K. Johnston, Edinburgh. William Blackwood & Sons, Edinburgh & London,(1861) David Rumsey Historical Map Collection http://www.davidrumsey.com/ (Click on image to enlarge)

First, two of Thomas’ sons, Sylvester and Charles, had already moved to Porter County in 1859 and 1862, respectively. Here is a description of Sylvester’s move, from The History of Porter County:

Then acting under the persuasion of a friend Mr. Ellsworth, who had settled in Porter county, Indiana, and also from his own wish to locate further west, Mr. Casbon came to this county in 1859 and began teaching in what was then known as the Ellsworth school, which he conducted successfully for three terms. He also taught one term in Boone Grove and one term in the House school, as it was called then, but later known as Boone Grove school. [1]

“Ellsworth” in the preceding paragraph is a probably a misspelling of Aylesworth. The Aylesworth family history is intimately tied with that of the Casbons. When Thomas and family arrived in Wayne County, Ohio, two brothers, Ira and Philip Aylesworth, were already living there with their extended families. [2] In addition, another one of their brothers, Giles Aylesworth, had moved from Wayne County, Ohio, to Porter County, Indiana in 1842. [3] Another Ira Aylesworth, Philip Aylesworth’s son, moved to Porter County in 1845. [4] It’s unclear which “Mr. Ellsworth” (Aylesworth) influenced Sylvester to come to Porter County. I think it was probably either Elias or Sylvenus Aylesworth, grandsons of Philip Aylesworth. [5] They were both born in Ohio and were contemporaries of Sylvester Casbon. At some point they moved to Boone Township in Porter County, and were both living there in 1860. [6]

I should also point out that Sylvester married Mary Adeline Aylesworth, daughter of Giles, in Porter County.

Charles Casbon’s biography in The History of Porter County suggests that he was influenced to move westward by the New York Herald (mislabeled as Tribune in the biography), whose famous editor, Horace Greeley, frequently exhorted his readers to “Go west, young man, and grow up with the country.”

It was partly with the inspiration derived from the Tribune, and also from the spirit of pioneering which had possessed his father before him, that caused Charles Casbon on arriving at his majority to start for the west. In company with a friend, George Bittner, in March, 1862, he arrived at Valparaiso, a small place at that time, where he paused in his journey and in this vicinity has remained ever since, to his own profit and to the benefit of the community. [7]

There is one problem with this version of events: Horace Greeley did not use the phrase “Go West, young man…” until 1865, [8] well after Charles left for Indiana! However, the statement that he went with his friend, George Bittner, sounds reasonable. An entry for George Bitner, born about 1844, is listed in the 1860 census for Washington Township, Holmes County, Ohio, [9] just five entries away from the listing for Thomas Casbon. This means they would have been neighbors. Assuming this is the George Bittner who accompanied Charles Casbon, he must not have stayed in Indiana, since he is listed in Holmes County, Ohio in later censuses, [10] and died in adjacent Wayne County in 1927. [11]

Not only did Sylvester and Charles move from Ohio to Indiana, but their older sister Mary Anne married Elijah Priest in 1853, [12] and moved to Porter County sometime after 1860, when the census recorded them living in Holmes County, Ohio. [13]

The fact that three of his children were in Indiana was probably a major reason that Thomas decided to make the move himself.

In addition to his children, many others were migrating from Ohio to Indiana. Some of the earliest settlers of Porter County came there from Wayne County, Ohio in the early 1830s. [14] A fairly steady stream of residents migrated from Wayne and Holmes Counties through the 1860s. [15],[16]

A partial list of individuals who migrated from Wayne & Holmes counties, Ohio, to Porter County, Indiana (Click on image to enlarge)

There were probably many factors behind this migration, foremost being the availability of cheap fertile land. As the population grew, it was easier to move west where there was abundant land instead of dividing already cultivated areas into smaller and smaller plots. This might have been a factor behind Thomas’ move as well.

A final factor in his decision to leave Ohio might have been the fact that Thomas’ brother in law James Scruby died in 1852, [17] and James’ wife Phebe died in 1851. [18] With their deaths Thomas and Emma no longer had family connections in the immediate area.

With his children’s relocation to northwest Indiana, the ongoing migration of other local families to the same area, and the loss of Emma’s family connections in Ohio, Thomas’ desire to move must have been compelling.

[1] “History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of Its Historical Progress, Its People and Its Principal Interests,” Volume 2, pp 482-3. Lewis Publishing Company, 1912. Google Books https://books.google.com/books/about/History_of_Porter_County_Indiana.html?id=Nk00AQAAMAAJ [accessed 28 October 2016]
[2] “United States Census, 1840.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRJ-B3X [accessed 28 October 2016]
[3] “Aylesworth Family Of Porter County.” 1976. A Biographical History of Porter County, Indiana. Valparaiso, Indiana: American Revolution Bicentennial Committee of Porter County, Inc. Porter County, Indiana http://www.inportercounty.org/Data/Biographies/Aylesworth45.html [accessed 28 October 2016]
[4] [4] “Aylesworth Family Of Porter County.” 1976
[5] “The Aylesworth Family of Porter County Indiana…Eighth Generation” Aylesworth.net http://www.aylesworth.net/Confidence_family_DWT_CSS/Porter/porter_8.html [accessed 28 October 2016]
[6] “Unites States Census, 1860.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GB9J-SZ6V?i=2&wc=QZ2C-XBP%3A1589426070%2C1589426630%2C1589423434%3Fcc%3D1473181&cc=1473181 [accessed 28 October 2016]
[7] “History of Porter County, Indiana…” Volume 2, pp 459-61.
[8] “Go West, Young Man, Go West. ” Dictionary of American History. Encyclopedia.com. http://www.encyclopedia.com [accessed 28 October 2016]
[9] “United States Census, 1860” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCG3-1SN[accessed 29 October 2016]
[10] “United States Census, 1880.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M89H-FTK [accessed 29 October 2016]
[11] “Ohio Deaths, 1908-1953.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X82N-2XF [accessed 29 October 2016]
[12] “Ohio, Marriages, 1800-1958.” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XDK9-L58 [accessed 21 July 2016]
[13] “United States Census, 1860” FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MCGS-MZ2 [accessed 28 October 2016]
[14] Goodspeed, W.A.;Blanchard, C. 1882. Counties of Porter and Lake, Indiana: Historical and Biographical, Illustrated. pp. 17, 177, 332, 380-2. Chicago, Illinois: F. A. Battey & Company. Internet Archive https://archive.org/details/countiesofporter00good [accessed 28 October 2016]
[15] Goodspeed, W.A.;Blanchard, C. 1882. Counties of Porter and Lake, Indiana.
[16] “History of Porter County, Indiana…”
[17] “Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center Obituary Index.” Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center http://index.rbhayes.org/hayes/index/record_detail.asp?id=2304084 [accessed 16 Aug 2016]
[18] “Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center Obituary Index.” Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center http://index.rbhayes.org/hayes/index/record_detail.asp?id=2304086 [accessed 16 Aug 2016]

From England to Indiana, Part 3

October 21, 2016April 14, 2020 admin14 Comments

This is the third post in a series discussing the handwritten family history of Isaac Casbon and his descendants. This post focuses on Thomas Casbon’s emigration to the United States with his family.

(Click on image to enlarge)

Thomas Casbon emigrated to United States in the year of ~~1865~~ 1846. Although I haven’t been able to find a ship’s manifest or passenger list documenting Thomas’ voyage to America, there are several sources describing his emigration. One of the more detailed is the following, contained in a biographical sketch of his son Sylvester:

“Thomas … Casbon … who was an English farmer, in 1847 determined to share in the remarkable opportunities of the new world, and in that year embarked his family at Southampton on board the Canadian lumber boat Parkfield.…The boat on which they took passage had a long and tedious voyage, leaving England in February, first sighting land at the Banks and thence sailing up the St. Lawrence river.… At Niagara the family made the transfer in the horse cars then in use, and all had time to enjoy the spectacle of the mighty falls. From Buffalo they took another boat to Cleveland, where they arrived in the month of May. Thomas Casbon, the father, moved to Wayne county, Ohio, and bought eighty acres of land near Wooster.”[1]

The source above incorrectly gives the year as 1847. When Thomas applied for naturalization in 1852, he gave the year of his emigration as 1846.[2]

The journey must have been memorable. Another description says “the sailing vessel on which they all embarked encountered adverse winds that after several weeks drove it back within sight of the starting point, and it was a long voyage before the western continent appeared.”[3] Sylvester later named a son Charles Parkfield Casbon – his middle name commemorating the ship that brought them from England to America!

He was Married to Emma Scruby at Meldrith or Melborn Church Cambridgeshire England where the record may be found. Here is a copy of Thomas and Emma’s marriage record from the Melbourn parish registers, dated October 9, 1830.[4]

(Click on image to enlarge)

There are a couple of interesting things to point out in this marriage record. First, notice that the married couple and the two witnesses all signed with their ‘mark.’ Thomas used an ‘x’ and Emma used a ‘+’ sign. This suggests that neither one was proficient at writing. This is not surprising, because there was no compulsory education in England at the time.[5]

The other item of interest is that Joseph Casbon is listed as a witness to the marriage. We learned in the previous post that Joseph was Thomas’ younger brother. This marriage record is the only primary source document I’ve seen that links Joseph with the rest of the family.

Thomas and Emma Casbon had born to them 4 son’s and 2 daughters the firs born son died in infancy the name being the same as the secon born boy. Mary Ann Silvester Charles Jesse and Emma the last Daughter beng born in the state of Ohio Wayne Co. Mary Anne Casbon was baptized in Meldreth in 1833[6]. Their firstborn son was named Sell. He was baptized in 1836[7] and buried 23 days later[8]. Their next son, also named Sell (a nickname for Sylvester), was baptized 1837 in Meldreth[9]. The next two sons, Charles (“Thomas Charles”) and Jesse, were baptized in Meldreth 1840[10] and 1844, respectively.[11] Finally, daughter Emma was born May 22^nd, 1847[12], not quite 1 year after they arrived in Wayne County, Ohio.

Everything in this part of the family history matches the original sources. The author must have had first-hand knowledge of most of this information. I wonder if one of Thomas’ children was the author?

[1] “Sylvester V. Casbon” History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests. Lewis Publishing Company (1912), Pages 482-484. Hathi Trust Digital Library: https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/011679885 [accessed 20 August 2016]
[2] Wayne County HIstorical Society (Ohio), Genealogical Section, Wayne County, Ohio : abstracts of naturalization records, 1812-1903 (Wooster, Ohio: Wayne County Historical Society – Genealogical Section, 1985), page 29
[3] “History of Porter County, Indiana.” Page 459
[4] Church of England. “Bishop’s transcripts for Melbourne, 1599-1847.” Marriages 1830. FamilySearch https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9T9-6B25?i=536&cat=1109075 [accessed 15 May 2016]
[5] Lemire, D. A Historiographical Survey of Literacy in Britain between 1780 and 1830. Constellations Vol 4, No.1 (2012). https://ejournals.library.ualberta.ca/index.php/constellations/article/viewFile/18862/14652 [accessed 18 Aug 2016)
[6] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Baptisms 1833. FHL Microfilm #1040542. Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1980
[7] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Baptisms 1836
[8] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Burials 1836
[9] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Baptisms 1837
[10] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Baptisms 1840
[11] Church of England., “Parish registers for Meldreth, 1681-1877”, Baptisms 1844
[12] “Emma Rigg” Find A Grave Memorial # 18208125. Find A Grave http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=18208125 [accessed 18 Aug 2016]