Ancestry Magazine

Recently, I received an e-mail from Andy Likins of Colorado that got me thinking. He told about his good fortune—receiving a family history bonanza almost out of the blue:

Last summer, I was contacted by my father’s second cousin. He is now in his 80s, was moving into a retirement home, and wanted to pass along some family heirlooms. My father and I had been in touch with him about 20 years ago when we were trying to reconnect with relatives to fill in some blanks in the family history. Well, this cousin has no children of his own and is the only child of an only child.

He had a lot of photos, etc., which belonged to his grandparents, Archie and Jennie (Freeman) Noel. I am a descendant of one of Archie’s sisters and was thrilled when I received my cousin’s package, which included the Noel family Bible (from the 1860s), many wonderful photos (including one of my great-great-great-grandfather, George W. Noel, who was killed in the Civil War), and a letter from George W. Noel to his son. I also received the Freeman family Bible (from the 1870s) and many Freeman photos. Naturally, since I am only related to the Freemans by marriage, I would love to see these go to a descendant of Edward and Cornelia Freeman.

How practical, forward thinking, and kind of Andy’s cousin to take this measure. While it would be tempting to bring the family Bible and photos to the retirement home, I assume the second cousin realized the potential danger—the items could have been tossed or sold upon his eventual passing.

The Basics

Andy gave me the fundamentals of the Freeman stash. He said that the Bible was from 1874, belonged to Edward and Cornelia (Fuller) Freeman of Sioux Rapids, Iowa, and included birth, marriage, and death details for the couple and their six children. He also mentioned that there were a number of tintypes, cabinet cards, and other photos of members of the Freeman family—some identified, some not. The entries in the Bible provided more than enough to get started:

Edward Freeman was born in England in 1837, died in 1915 in Frederick, Brown Co., South Dakota, and married Cornelia Fuller in 1862 in Sauk Co., Wisconsin. She was born in 1842 in New York and died in 1928 in Frederick, Brown Co., South Dakota. Together they had:

1. William Jesse Freeman; b: 1862 in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin; d: 1941 in Minneapolis, Hennepin Co., Minnesota; m. Jennie Welch about 1888

2. Elizabeth Cordelia “Delia” Freeman; b: 1864 in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin; d: probably in Minnesota; m. Harding Parks about 1888

3. Mary Jane “Jennie” Freeman; b: 15 Nov 1868 in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin; d: 25 Feb 1933 in Pierre, Hughes Co., South Dakota; m. Archie Eldee Noel on 7 Dec 1893 in Buena Vista Co., Iowa

4. Harriet “Hattie” Melvina Freeman; b: 1870 in Spring Green, Sauk Co., Wisconsin; d: 1931 in Frederick, Brown Co., South Dakota; m. Elmer Cummings in 1892

5. Anna Laura Freeman; b: 1875 in Fredericksburg, Chickasaw Co., Iowa; d: 1946 probably in Wisconsin; m. Daniel Davies in 1899

6. Eddie Freeman; b: 1880 in Fredericksburg, Chickasaw Co., Iowa; d: 1880

Strategy Time

I juggle lots of cases, so I have to figure out how to reach the finish line in the least time possible. Offhand, this looked like a promising situation. I had five children who had survived to adulthood and only about a 100- to 120-year gap to cross. And genealogically speaking, Wisconsin and Minnesota are both good states—not among those that are stingy with their records.

It might not be fair, but I knew from tracking countless cases before that it would probably be smart to focus on William, the only male child who could have had children of his own. If I zeroed in on him, I might have the luxury of dealing with just the Freeman name—at least for a generation or two. If that didn’t work out, I reasoned, I had his sisters’ married names and could try locating one of their lines.

Where’s William?

I was somewhat surprised to discover how hard it was to get traction on William. This was partly due to how common his name was, but I would later discover other contributing factors, such as incorrect birthplaces listed for William in some census records and the fact that the family had detoured through Iowa for a number of years.

After some effort, I finally found a family that interested me even though it wasn’t a perfect fit in every census record. If I was right, William J. Freeman did indeed have a wife named Jennie (although one record suggested her true name was Sarah Jennie). And thanks to the appearance of her unmarried sister, Annie Welch, in their household a couple of times, I could tell that Jennie’s maiden name had been Welch—just as the Bible entry indicated. As I followed the couple through the 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930 census records, they appeared to fit about 95 percent of my expectations. And yes, they wound up in Hennepin County, Minnesota, as suggested by the Bible.

Elmo and Edward

Assuming I had the correct family, William had sons named Edward W. and Elmo. Again, following one of my own guidelines, I focused on Elmo first since his name was more distinct, but he proved to be almost as elusive as his father. While I was able to find several listings of his death in 1970, as well as that of his wife, Elizabeth, I couldn’t pick up any trace of children he might have had.

So now it was Edward’s turn. As I waded through all the Edward Freeman candidates, I found myself muttering out loud and contemplating turning to another case. But then I caught a break.

Joe Beine to the Rescue

I don’t know what it says about me that one of my favorite websites is www.deathindexes.com. Webmaster Joe Beine somehow manages to keep on top of an endless array of sites that just might direct you to the deaths of your ancestors. Organized geographically, starting at the state level and working down to cities and towns, this easy-to-navigate resource is a must-bookmark for all family historians. You’ll find brief descriptions and links for cemeteries, obituary indexes, online vital records, and more.

As you might suspect, it’s a little random. One county your ancestors lived in might offer plenty of options, whereas another might be essentially barren of any death-related sites. But it’s always worth checking, so I did. It was under the listings for Hennepin County, Minnesota, that I found a link for Lakewood Cemetery. Burials from 1872 to the present? Just maybe …

Edward’s Trail

There he was: Edward W. Freeman, age 86, died on 18 June 1977. I had searched the Minnesota Death Index on Ancestry.com earlier, but he had slipped through my grasp because there were too many Edwards—I had to limit the search to those who had died in Hennepin County, and, of course, he hadn’t died there even though he was buried there. But now armed with more specifics, I searched the Ancestry.com index again and discovered that his mother’s maiden name was Welch. Yes, this was the right fellow.

So now that I had the right Edward and plenty of details, I was able to quickly pluck out his World War I draft registration (which didn’t reveal what the W stood for, but did list a wife, along with a weak heart and knee) and his record in the 1920 census. In 1930, I was delighted to spot a pair of daughters.

Minnesota Vitals

I’m going to avoid mentioning specific names in the interest of privacy, but suffice it to say that I was more than pleased when I realized this branch of the family had decided to stay put in Minnesota. With a birth index that covers 1935 to 2002, a marriage index that covers 1958 to 2001, and a death index that covers 1908 to 2002, I knew I could work the Minnesota databases at Ancestry.com to find family members alive today. And sure enough, I did.

Once I had identified a great-great-granddaughter of the original owners of the Bible, I e-mailed Andy with the news. He chose the snail-mail approach of contacting her family, so it took a while, but they eventually replied, confirming their relationship—and thrilled to have been found. Andy then sent them the Bible, along with over 70 photographs, many of them taken in the 19th century. Were they pleased? Well, it turns out that there are some avid family historians among them, and here are just a few snippets of their responses to Andy:

This is so very amazing! Wow! I’m simply awe-struck!

God bless you, Andy! This is wonderful! (What else can I say?!)

Thank you so very much, Andy! I just can’t get over this little miracle! You are an angel!

Based on the family’s reaction, I’d say that Andy and his cousin both made smart, though difficult, decisions. And I have to wonder whether I would have the courage and generosity to do the same. Could I part with family treasures to ensure their survival? I like to think so, and here’s hoping that when my turn comes, I’ve got what it takes to set those treasures free.

If you have another family’s Bible, photos, military medal, bridal book, or other item that you’d like to return, please go to http://www.honoringourancestors.com, click on the “Submissions” menu, and select Orphan Heirlooms. I can’t tackle every case that’s submitted, but there’s always a chance that yours will be next.

Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak is a regular contributor to Ancestry Magazine and the Ancestry Weekly Journal and the author of a number of family history books. Check out Roots Television—her latest endeavor—at http://www.rootstelevision.com