James WAITS is my 5th great grandfather. In other words, he’s my grandfather’s grandfather’s great grandfather!

James was born in Berkeley County, Virginia (which is now West Virginia).  His tombstone says he was born in 1760, but a deposition that I read in his Revolutionary [...]]]>

James WAITS is my 5th great grandfather. In other words, he’s my grandfather’s grandfather’s great grandfather!

James was born in Berkeley County, Virginia (which is now West Virginia).  His tombstone says he was born in 1760, but a deposition that I read in his Revolutionary War Pension file says that he was born in March of 1762.

In May 1777 when James was 17, he joined the American Revolution.  He enlisted in the militia of Washington County, Pennsylvania and served six months under the command of Colonel Springer.  During this time, he was “engaged in several skirmishes with the Indians at Garrets Fort and on the waters of Whitely.”  He served again in 1778 out of Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

James applied for his pension in April 1833 and was eventually awarded a pension in March 1834 in the amount of $54.65 per year for his service in the War of Independence.

In 1781, he married Margaret Livengood in Washington County, Pennsylvania.  She was born 3 Sep 1763 in Greene County, Pennsylvania.  I don’t yet know who her parents were.  James and Margaret raised eleven children and were married for 74 years.  Neither knew how to read or write and signed papers with an X, known as their “marks.”  Although they didn’t write out their names, their marks are definitely unique.  James wrote his as an “and” sign like I use.  Margaret used an X with swirly tips.

James WAITS signature, aka: "his mark"

Margaret Waits signature (aka: "her mark")

In 1782, James volunteered for military service again.  This time, he fought in Sandusky.

In 1799, James and Margaret moved to Clermont County, Ohio along with his brother Charles who was also in the Revolutionary War.  According to an article in the Clermont Courier, (July 1, 1885), James lived in Williamsburg and was always out for the Fourth of July celebrations.

In 1838, he is listed as owning 118 acres in Sterling Township, Brown County, Ohio.  Nearby, were his brother Charles as well as James’ sons Charles (my 4th great grandfather) and Jacob.

James and Margaret lived in Sterling, Brown, Ohio for the remainder of their lives.  James died on March 2, 1855 at the age of 95.  He is buried at Taylor Chapel Cemetery in Sterling, Brown, Ohio.  Section 1, Row 5, Grave 9.

After the death of her husband, Margaret filed for her widow’s pension at the age of 92.  She died the following year on July 14, 1856.  I’m not sure where she is buried.

I’d like to take a trip to Ohio soon, so I can visit his grave and find hers.  Also, there is a book at the Batavia library in Clermont County that apparently has a wealth of information about James and his brother Charles as well as their families.

I’d also like to thank Footnote.com for blessing me with 58 pages of his pension file!  Without them, who knows how long it would have taken me to see his X. It’s a remarkable experience to see an image that he touched so many years ago.  Thank you!

I took a little trip to Milford today to take a couple of photos for people on www.findagrave.com.  One of the requests was for a military stone and the requester mentioned that it might just be a stone with his ancestor’s name and military information on [...]]]>

I took a little trip to Milford today to take a couple of photos for people on www.findagrave.com.  One of the requests was for a military stone and the requester mentioned that it might just be a stone with his ancestor’s name and military information on it, and that it was probably in a long row of military stones.  Wow.  Was he ever right! 

There are 165 stones in this cemetery that honor G.A.R. soldiers.  I could tell from the dates on the star that it had to do something with the Civil war, but had to look it up when I got back.  G.A.R. stands for the Grand Army of the Republic… ie: those who fought for the Union side in the Civil War.  I had no idea that there were so many of these graves here in the Nebraska countryside!  I wonder if this cemetery was “the place” to bury them?

When I set out to find the headstone I came for, I very systematically went through and photographed all of these military headstones so I could load them onto the findagrave website.  I figured it would be a good little project for me and it was my way of thanking them for their service.  Unfortunately, I forgot to bring a spare battery for my camera… ouch… so I was able to get all of the stones except THREE.  Ugh.  And that was before I made it over to the cemetery in Ruby, NE for another findagrave request. 

Fortunately, it was a beautiful day to spend snapping photos and I’m looking forward to my return so I can finish what I started. 

Edwin was born in Milford, Seward, Nebraska, USA and died in Marion, Oregon, USA.  It’s my understanding that he was married with kids.  Was it common back then to take someone’s body [...]]]>

I thought it would be fitting today to show you Edwin William Waits’ tombstone, since he was a major part of my day yesterday.

Edwin was born in Milford, Seward, Nebraska, USA and died in Marion, Oregon, USA.  It’s my understanding that he was married with kids.  Was it common back then to take someone’s body across country and not bury them with their spouse?  That seemed to happen a lot in my family.

I took this photo at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery in Ruby, Seward, Nebraska, USA on Memorial Day, 2009 and noticed that a few of my family’s graves had flowers on them.  Same thing in the Seward Cemetery.  Assuming that the visitors are cousins, I’d really like to talk to them and let them know about my research and blog and see if they want to compare notes.  Does anyone have any ideas on how I would get in touch with them?  I’ve thought about leaving a note in a ziploc next Memorial Day, but that’s nine months away.  Seems a shame to let it go that long if we live in the same area.