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EDITORIAL
This issue of Wolvertons Unlimited brings the total
number of pages to 212, which is equivalent to a good-sized book. It is
my intention in the next couple months to compile and type an index for
all of the previous pages of the newsletter. The index could be added to
vols. 1-4 and then bound together if someone wishes. Starting with the
Jan./Feb. 1997 issue I will start over with page 1 in numbering, and hopefully
in 4 more years another index will be done for those years.
I've been quite busy this past year. In addition
to printing this newsletter I have started a second family newsletter on
my grandmother Frieda Quiram Gohr's family. (The Quiram name is German,
and I've been able to find Quirams in Canada, Brazil, and Germany who most
likely are related. The name is also spelled Kwiram and Kwirant.) Along
with this I am doing a massive update on a book that has already been done
on this Quiram family. I am also active in my church and do a lot of writing
of historical/religious articles with my job. And this year I am president
of the local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. Plus we have
adopted a new baby, Aaron, who is 5 months old. I contemplated making the
newsletter quarterly, but I've decided to continue with the same format
(6 times a year, mailed in a standard envelope). Each issue will continue
to be 10 pages unless an insert is added. A renewal form is enclosed. This
would be a good time to let me know if there is a topic that you'd like
discussed in the newsletter or if you have a query or question you'd like
answered.
Bonnie Woolverton also suggests that if you do not
have internet access, "Get on the Net!" [See a copy of the
main screen of Bonnie's Home Page listing on page 207.] If you do not
have a personal computer, most university and college libraries have computer
terminals available to users. Also many companies and offices are getting
on the internet. I also understand that almost 50% of all the public libraries
in the nation now offer E-Mail and internet access to the public. Here
in Springfield each of the branch libraries offers free internet access.
Recently, I upgraded to a better computer and purchased a modem so that
I can have internet access at home. It has been a real eye opener. There
are many genealogy and other sites available for doing research of all
kinds, and communication is cheap (or free) when sending E-Mail versus
the old snail mail (U.S. Postal Service). [Note: If you have an E-Mail
address, send it in so we can make a Wolverton/Woolverton E-mail directory.
-ed.]
In 1997 I intend to print pedigree charts
showing my Woolverton lineage with connections to the related families
of Harris, Littlefield, Hanks, Dodson, Neville, etc. I also want to list
more information on Charles Woolverton the immigrant and each of his 9
children. Also give a brief outline down to the 3rd generation at
least to show the early generations of Woolvertons in the U.S.
For this I'll be relying primarily on David Macdonald's research which
has tremendously updated what we know about the early generations of the
Woolverton family.
FROM THE BOOKSHELF:
Barcroft Family Records: An Account of the Family in England and
the Descendants of Ambrose Barcroft, the Emigrant of Solebury, Pennsylvania,
by Emma Ten Broeck Runk. 322 p., illus., appendices, and indexes. Originally
published in 1910. Reprinted 1997 in paperback by Heritage Books.
Eight generations of the Barcrofts in America are
covered, from the arrival of Ambrose Barcroft (c1716, probably in Maryland)
until the time of this book's original publication in 1910. Ambrose Barcroft
purchased property in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in 1723, and the family
became firmly established in Pennsylvania and New Jersey during the next
two centuries. The author has included many fine pictures of places, people,
and relevant documents. There is an index of Barcroft names and a general
index where related names are listed. Related families mentioned in the
book include: Dimond, Fisher, Hill, Little, Moore, Potter, Rittenhouse,
Runk, Smith, WOLVERTON, and others.
The Wolverton connection is through Jonathan Woolverton
(1754- ) [son of Dennis Woolverton2, Charles1] who married Mary Barcroft. Also through Anna "Nancy" Wolverton (1794-1883) [daughter of John Woolverton4 (Morris3, Charles2, Charles1 and Rachel Quimby] who married Ambrose Barcroft (1793-1881) son of Ambrose
Barcroft and Francena Opdycke. The book also includes information on the
Barcroft family in England, which traces back to a Norman nobleman under
William the Conqueror named Gilbert de Berecroft.
Emma Ten Broeck Runk also wrote The Woolvertons:
Early Legal Records of the Family in New Jersey and the Descendants of
Charles Woolverton (2) to the Seventh Generation in 1932. This 91-page
book is an excellent treatment of the early history of the Woolvertons
in the U.S. The book focuses on the descendants of Charles Woolverton,
son of Charles Woolverton the immigrant. The Barcroft connection is also
mentioned here. [For anyone interested, I will photocopy Miss Runk's
book on the Woolvertons for $4.60 + $3.00 shipping--ed.]
Order the Barcroft book from: Heritage Books, Inc.
1540-E Pointer Ridge Place, Bowie, MD 20716; Order #R854. Prepublication
price until Dec. 31, 1996 is $19.00 + $4.00 postage and handling. After
Dec. 31st the price will be $23.50 + $4.00 shipping. For credit card orders,
call 1-800-398-7709. E-Mail: heritagebooks@usa.pipeline.com; Web Site:
http://www.heritagebooks.com.
* * * * * * * *
BONNIE'S
HOME PAGE
If you wish to view Bonnie Woolverton's Home Page
simply click on the link above (or below). The next issue of WU will include
more information from her Home Page. Her E-Mail address is: bonniew@e-tex.com
, Her web site address is: http://www.e-tex.com/personal/bonniew/index.htm
WOOLVERTON INN NEWSLETTER
The Woolverton Inn has started a promotional newsletter.
I received Vol. I, Issue 1, dated October 28, 1996. The newsletter mentions
that the Inn has recently been remodeled. Several specials are listed for
the holidays and for January and February. The newsletter also includes
"The Woolverton Inn Recipe Corner" and a nice article called
"Come Explore Bucolic New Jersey" which mentions that "more
than half the land in Hunterdon County is still actively farmed, offering
visitors many wonderful vistas." Also it says the only surviving covered
bridge in New Jersey is in Hunterdon County. Hunterdon County exhibits
rural beauty and urbane sensibility. It is known for its long country roads
flanked by woods, streams and corn fields, and the article says, "Visit
once and your impression of New Jersey will forever change. Woolverton
Inn gift certificates are also available. For reservations or to receive
their newsletter call 1-888-AN INN 4U (1-888-264-6648) or write: Woolverton
Inn, 6 Woolverton Road, Stockton, NJ 08559.
MORE ON VIRGINIA WOLVERTON [???]
After the query listed in the last newsletter (p.
204), subscriber Patricia Treece responded with answers to this problematic
lineage. Patricia Treece is descended from Andrew Woolverton3, Joel2, Charles1.
She sent along pages from chapter 18 of her book on Sams History which
she has recently completed. Chapter 18 deals with "The Huff/Hough
Family" which is an allied line to the Sams line which she has been
tracing. There is NO Wolverton/Woolverton connection to the Huff line.
From Patricia's records we find the following: John
Shepard, b. ca. 1627 in England, d. June 12, 1707 at Hartford, Connecticut.
On October 4, 1649 in Hartford, Connecticut he married Rebecca Greenhill.
She was born ca. 1634 in Staplehurst, Kent, England, and died on December
22, 1689 at Hartford, Connecticut.
The father of John Shepard is Edward Shepard, b.
1600 in England, who was married in England on December 5, 1620 to VIOLET
STANLEY or WOLVE? Violet is also reported to have been born in 1600, most
likely in England. Notice first of all that Edward Shepard's wife is named
Violet and not Virginia. Also her last name definitely is NOT Wolverton.
Instead it appears to be STANLEY. After concurrence with Jim Mayor, he
heartily agrees that her name is not Virginia Wolverton, but instead is
Violet Stanley. Thus this mystery has been solved and another false lead
corrected. Thanks to Patricia Treece for this valuable information.
SYMPATHY
Sympathy to the family of my aunt, Lucile Elmyra
(Harris) Semadeni, b. 27 April 1917 at Charlie, TX. She passed away Wednesday,
December 4, 1996 at her home in Dove Creek, Colorado. Memorial services
were held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, December 7, at the Dove Creek elementary
school and burial was at Cedar Point Cemetery. She was the widow of Jack
Semadeni [See his obituary in WU, pp. 121-124]. She was the oldest
child of William Earl Harris and Orpha Antonia Hazel (Garvin) Harris. I
hope to print her obituary in the Jan./Feb. issue of the newsletter.
ACCOLADES
Congratulations to Katherine Littlefield Smith of
Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is descended from John Monroe Littlefield, son of
Nancy Artemisia (Woolverton) Littlefield. During this past year she had
supplementals approved for the Daughters of the American Revolution on
the following ancestors: Moses Hanks, Thomas Dodson III, Thomas Dodson,
Jr., and Joseph Neville, Sr. I had supplied her with information on these
about 5 years ago. She also had a supplement approved on Daniel Merrill
on her Carothers/Merrill line, thanks to input from subscriber Josephine
Adams of Danville, California. Katherine made copies of these 5 supplementals
and proofs and mailed them to six of her first cousins who are all in the
DAR. They are Geneva Metzger, Dorotha Sexon, Retha Willis, Gladys Sellers
(daughters of Hardeman Littlefield); Betty Yeager (daughter of George W.
Littlefield); and Lurland Raibourne (daughter of James Elmo Littlefield).
If anyone else needs proofs for sending supplementals to DAR or SAR on
the above individuals, let me know. Any of our subscribers who descend
from the HANKS family are eligible through the first 4 ancestors listed
above.
My aunt and uncle, Bill and Norma Harris, celebrated
their 50th wedding anniversary on December 1, 1996. A reception was held
at St. Anthony of Padua Parish Hall at Novato, California, where they live.
Norma's 3 brothers were singers at the event and entertained the audience
with familiar songs from the 40s. Their son, William Earl Harris, III,
was master of ceremonies, and all 7 of their children had a part in planning
the party. The grandchildren decorated the hall and served food. Both priests
came and gave them their blessings. 335 people were in attendance including
their children, with spouses and grandchildren. Bill's brothers and sisters
in attendance included Hazel and Lawrence Gohr (my parents) of Monte Vista,
Colorado; Ruby Jean Barber of Cortez, Colorado; and John P. Harris of Colorado
Springs, Colorado. Also a niece, Aleta and Bob Huck and son Stephen attended
from Clayton, California. And a cousin, Earl Dean Harris (son of Uncle
Willie Harris), also of Novato, was there.
In honor of my aunt and uncle's anniversary, I composed
a poem which I am reprinting here. Some background information follows.
William Earl "Bill" Harris, Jr. and Norma Wakeley (Lopez) Harris
were married on December I, 1946 at Star-of-the-Sea Catholic Church at
Sausalito, California, just one week before Norma's 18th birthday. Bill
Harris is the oldest son of William Earl Harris and Orpha Hazel (Garvin)
Harris. The Earl Harris family left Texas and moved near Dove Creek, Colorado,
on the Utah border in the spring of 1935. They raised 8 children. In the
second verse, my mother (Hazel) is the one he probably tried to teach to
drive. [My mother says that actually it was her brothers J. D. &
John who tried to teach her to drive when she was young. But Bill probably
also influenced her as he was just 2 years older than her.] My mother
gave up on driving at that time (late 1930s or 1940s). Finally, with automatic
transmissions, etc., she learned to drive, when she was past 60. She is
now 75 years old.
Bill and Norma met while he was stationed in the
Philippines during World War II. Norma's father, Joaquin Lopez, was killed
by a bomb in March 1945 when she was just 16. Soon after this, Norma's
family had to flee from the Japanese, traveling through the mountains at
night and sleeping in bushes during the day. Bill lost all contact with
this family. But as providence would have it, Bill was stationed at a base
near San Francisco, and Norma's family also ended up there. Norma's mother
was an American citizen, so the family was able to come to the United States.
It just so happened that Bill ran into Norma and her family at the base,
and soon love blossomed. They married and raised 7 children.
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