Birth Month Monday – February Edition

Happy Birthday Ancestors!

Birth Month Monday is a blog theme I created to highlight my ancestors and the significant and/or noteworthy events during their life - and post it on Monday.

Five of my ancestors were born in February.  Common to all of them were epidemics, cholera and/or flu, various wars and the election of several Presidents during their lifetime.  And the weather – very cold, possibly snowing in February – except for Uncle Cecil who was born in southern California.  Placing my ancestors in selected historical contexts illustrates what they lived without until the advances were made.  Deeper research may reveal the extent to which an invention/event impacted their lives.  

Hannah Carrigan (Clark), born 3 Feb 1819; died 7 Mar 1854.  Inventions included the railroad in 1828 and telegraph in 1833.  

My relationship: 3rd great-grandmother

Hannah married Benjamin Daniel Clark

  Child, Jane who married Thomas Brown

    Child Ida who married Henry Martin Kendall

      Child Ethel who married Alba William Hibsch

        Child Robert who married Betty Hutson

          Child – Me!

Henry Martin Kendall, born 9 Feb 1864 in Rowan County, Kentucky; died 14 May 1937 in Los Angeles County, California.  Inventions included the telephone in 1876, electric light bulb in 1879 and the automobile in 1885.  I’m not sure he flew on an airplane, invented when he was 39, but he probably read newspapers accounts of the exciting invention.

My relationship: great-grandfather

Henry married Ida May Brown

  Child Ethel who married Alba William Hibsch

    Child Robert who married Betty Hutson

      Child – Me!

Caroline Ernestine Hibsch (Williams) (Dripps), born 4 Feb 1867 in Prussia; died 21 Jun 1943 in Los Angeles County, California.  In addition to the inventions of Henry Kendall’s time, Caroline may have taken advantage of the bra invented in 1914 when she was 47.  What were her thoughts about women receiving the right to vote in the United States in 1920?  She was 53 – did she vote?  In 1928, the television and penicillin were invented.  Was there a TV in her house?  Did she benefit from penicillin?

My relationship: my 2nd great aunt

Caroline’s brother W.C. married Martha Bashor

  Child Alba who married Ethel May Kendall

    Child Robert who married Betty Hutson

      Child – Me!

   

John Ernest Hibsch, born 19 Feb 1880 in Calumet County, Wisconsin; died 7 Aug 1966 in Los Angeles County, California.  Inventions included the short-wave radio, the bikini, color TV, 45 rpm recordings and the polio vaccine.   How did this first-generation German-American handle the prohibition era when he was 38 to 53 years old and working in a grocery store? 

My relationship: 2nd great uncle

  John’s brother W.C. married Martha Bashor

    Child Alba who married Ethel May Kendall

      Child Robert who married Betty Hutson

        Child – Me!

Cecil Everett Hibsch, born 7 Feb 1902 in Los Angeles County, California; died 15 Jun 1981 in Williams, Colusa County, California.  His lifespan was rich with noteworthy events such as the Moon-landing in 1969, Watergate and Nixon resignation and 1st test-tube baby in 1978, 1st woman Supreme Court Justice and 1st space shuttle flight in 1981 at age 79. 

My relationship: great uncle

Cecil’s brother Alba married Ethel May Kendall

   Child Robert who married Betty Hutson

     Child – Me!

Happy Birthday!  You'd be amazed at what's available today.

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Parenthetical = married name

Event Source: Our Times  

Images Source: Creative Commons

Birth Month Monday - Thomas Brown of Ohio

Editor's Note:  Birth Month Monday is a blog theme I invented to highlight my ancestors during their month of birth.  The theme is intended to capture significant or noteworthy events in their lives.

Happy Birthday GG-Grandfather!
Thomas Brown was my great-great-grandfather on my Grandma Ethel's side.  His parents and siblings are unknown at this stage of my research.  However, there are hints of a father or brother named James, mother Sarah and a Van Pelt line.

Thomas was a husband, father, farmer and Civil War veteran.  He was also Ohio through and through.  With two exceptions discovered so far, he resided there all of his life beginning on June 3, 1843 until his death on April 7, 1927 at almost the age of 84.  Thomas lived in at least three counties:

• Highland (Jackson Township)
• Clinton (Wilson Township and Blanchester)
• Warren (Lebanon, Harlan Township and Morrow)

Civil War Service
From 1862 to 1865 he mustered in and out of the Civil War at Camp Chase and Camp Dennison in Hamilton County, Ohio.  His service took him about 46 miles away from home using a current day map.  He was only 19 years old.   Thomas's first tour of duty was with Company D, 85th Ohio Volunteer Infantry on July 2, 1862.  His second tour was with the 24th Ohio Light Artillery [Hill's Independent. Battery] on July 27, 1863.

About 1881 when he was 38 or so, Thomas filed his initial Civil War pension claim on the basis of the effects of measles he acquired during his service.  His claim would be approved eventually.  For the next 45 years until his death, he continued to file claims for pension increases.  Documents obtained in his pension file revealed several medical affidavits and notarized testimony of his health from personal friends.  Following his death, his widow, Rebecca Edwards Brown, filed and was approved for a widow's pension.

Marriage and Family
On January 30, 1866 Thomas married Jane Clark of Adams County, Ohio.  They had three children:

• Joseph Daniel Brown born 1867
• Ida May Brown born 1868 or 1869
• Hannah Ellen Brown born 1872

Ida May Brown was my Grandma Ethel's mother.  Ida was born in Worth County, Missouri according to her marriage and death records.  However, no other evidence supports that claim.  Perhaps a relative or neighbor of the Browns and Clarks lived in Worth County who drew the family there.  Some evidence suggests that Joseph and Hannah were born in Ohio.  Clues to follow-up on!

On January 10, 1880, a divorce notice appeared in the local newspaper.  Thomas had filed for divorce from Jane based on her "wilful absence for more than three years last past".  The divorce was granted on February 20, 1880 due to her non-response.  The children were not mentioned in the decree.  Census records indicated that Joseph remained with his father and Hannah became the 'adopted' daughter of Mahlon and Margaret Clark, Jane's brother.  The mystery remains as to who raised Ida, my great-grandmother.  She never spoke about her childhood so I'm currently piecing together her life through photos and newspaper articles when she moved to California hoping for hints related to the people with whom she interacted.

 On February 22, 1880, Thomas married Rebecca Edwards.  They had four children:

• Emma Blanche Brown born 1880
• Frank Leslie Brown born 1882
• Ollie Agnes Brown born 1885
• Murta Alma Brown born 1889

The life of Jane Clark Brown took a far different path.  In December 1881 she was committed to the Athens Insane Asylum in Athens, Ohio.  She remained there for the rest of her life, her brother Mahlon Clark serving as her guardian. 

I'm fortunate to be in touch with a descendant of a child of Thomas and Rebecca who is also interested in genealogy.  With our combined efforts we hope to learn more about the lives of the Browns, Clarks and Edwards.  Based on family stories and information in the pension record, Thomas Brown lived a quiet life, worked when possible despite various infirmities and was a respected, god-faring man.