William Randall Compton (1860 - 1912) - Part 1

Pedigree: Me > William Randall Compton II > William Randall Compton (grandfather)

William Randall Compton was born in Sullivanville, Chemung County, N.Y. on April 8, 1860, the son of Norris Matthew and Mary Brigham Compton. His siblings (my grandaunts and granduncle) were Ida Louis Compton (1857 - 1950), Johnson Brigham Compton (1863 -1886), Edith Mary Compton (1875 - 1964), and Lena May Compton (1879 - 1940).
He attended the common schools in the area until he was ten years old. By that time his services at home had become too valuable to allow his going to school except in the winter.

Compton home in Sullivanville, NY

At thirteen he entered the Spencer Academy at Spencer, Tioga County, N.Y., which he attended two terms.

Spencer Academy

He continued to study by himself, however, after his daily farm work was finished, and became a well-read, cultured man, taking special pride in the collection and possession of a good library.
The family then moved to Meadville, Pennsylvania in 1876, living at 838 Liberty Street until 1880.

838 Liberty Street, Meadville, PA

He attended the Bryant, Stratton & Smith Business College at Meadville. After completing the course there he was made a clerk in the Meadville post office, holding the position two years. 

Meadville Post Office (2nd from left)

He then went west, and worked on a farm in Illinois during the summer of 1880. Returning to the east, he secured a position with United States Express (a package delivery company) at Meadville, but soon gave up this work to engage in the manufacture of cigars, in partnership with his brother, Johnson Brigham Compton, back at Sullivanville in 1881.

On June 8, 1881 he married Alice Forshee (1860 - 1936) in nearby Watkins Glen, N.Y. They had four children (my half-uncles and half-aunts): Amy E. Compton (1882 - 1882 at age 4 1/2 months), Isabel Compton (1884 - 1972), Leon Randall Compton (1885 - 1920), and Fassett Brigham Compton (1889 - 1957), all born at Sullivanville.

William Randall Compton

Alice Forshee

The cigar business at Sullivanville with his brother proved distasteful, and he subsequently became a traveling salesman, continuing this occupation until 1889. At the age of 28 he joined the Masonic fraternity in the Southern Light Lodge No. 725 at Breesport, N. Y. His related dates were:
Initiated August 25, 1888, Passed September 8, 1888, Raised September 22, 1888

Breesville, N.Y. Masonic Lodge

His services to the Republican party in the presidential campaign of 1888, and his high qualifications for the position, led to his appointment, soon after the inauguration of President Harrison, in 1889 as chief clerk in the Office of the Sixth Auditor of the Treasury for the Post-office Department in Washington, D.C.  He resigned this position after a service of two years and came back to Elmira to engage in the real estate business.

To be continued...........

  

Christian Hennigar

Pedigree: Me > Norma Haynes > Lillian Laffin > Rosella Hennigar > John A. Hennigar > George Hennigar > Christian Hennigar (my 4th great grandfather)

Christian Hennigar, who settled in Douglas Township, Hants County, Nova Scotia, was born in Hatten, Alsace on January 26, 1755. Alsace was part of France on the German border at the time and its citizens were German speaking.,  He came to Philadelphia with family members when he was 14 years old.  He joined the American forces in the fight against the British, until he was taken prisoner at Long Island (Battle of Long Island, 27th August 1776).  Rather than remaining imprisoned, he then joined the men of the British 84th Regiment ("Royal Highland Emigrants"-Christian was in the 7th Company, 2nd Battalion).

Christian Hennigar received his discharge at Fort Edward, Windsor, N.S. on the 14th day of October 1783. The following is a transcript of his discharge papers:

Lieutenant Colonel Commandant to the second Battalion of his Majesty's Eighty-fourth Battalion of Foot, Whereof his excellency General Sir Guy Carlton K.B.C.C.C. is Colonel-in- Chief.  
      I, Christian Hennigar, do acknowledge that I have received all my clothing, pay, arrears of pay and every other just due and demand whatsoever from the time of my enlistment in the Battalion and Company mentioned on the other side to this present day of my discharge, also fourteen days pay to carry me to my proposed place of residence. 
 Witness my hand this 14th day of October, 1783. 
 X (Christian Hennigar) 
 Witness: Alex Fraser, Sr. Major. 

He received a grant of land in Douglas Township in the area now known as Upper Kennetcook, where he settled on the Kennetcook River. Christian added to his grant lands by purchasing 900 acres adjacent to his property. He improved the land with buildings and cleared the forest and owned orchards, and erected a grist mill.

On 22 April 1789 he married Mary Cannon at Windsor, Nova Scotia by Rev. William Ellis.  They had ten children, including five sons. 

Christian likely had a home, barn and some of his land cleared prior to his marriage.  Mary's father, James Cannon, was a stone mason and during the late 1750's he worked for a contractor in Halifax before moving to Kings County and was in Windsor by 1768, the year of Mary Ann's birth. Who her mother was is not known at this time. James Cannon died a pauper in late 1805 in Windsor. Christian was responsible for his father-in-law's burial and subsequently presented a township meeting with the bill for Cannon's funeral. The local officials were suitably annoyed to find that the total of £3.18s.6d that included 4s.6d for pipes and tobacco, 16s. for rum during Cannon's illness and 32s. for rum consumed by the mourners. They rejected the charges "as truly inadmissible and as being a very dangerous precedent". 

Christian had a mill on the Kennetcook River that had been built around 1790.  Christian Hennigar owned the grist mill that serviced the area of northern Hants County through the latter 1700's and early 1800's.  It was originally a water-powered grist mill. Over time it was equipped to mill lumber and shingles as well. His sons and heirs operated it until 1920. 
The stones from this grist mill are the ones that were moved in 1983 to Upper Kennetcook to the old one room school house property where they form the major part of a monument that was erected to Christian Hennigar by his many descendants. It was in this school that many of his descendants received their education. The dedication of this monument took place on July 24, 1983.

The Monument was deeded to the Hants East Historical Society for perpetual care.

Bill Compton and Lyman Densmore in 2008 at the monument

Christian's date of death is unknown at this time.  I could not locate a headstone in the Upper Kennetcook Anglican Church Cemetery.  Years ago, the cemetery committee "cleaned up" the graveyard of many broken and scattered headstones and unfortunately simply discarded them.

The St. Peter's Anglican Church in Upper Kennetcook has a stained glass window on the wall behind the pulpit:

   To The Glory of God and In Loving

   Memory of Christian Hennigar and his sons,

   James, George, John, Jacob, and Christian.

                                                   

Helen Rosamond Tubbs (1877 - 1953)

My relationship: Me > William R. Compton (father) > Helen Rosamond Tubbs (my paternal grandmother)

Helen Rosamond Tubbs was the 4th and last child born to Samuel Murray Tubbs and Rosamond Lillis Brooks on December 8, 1877 in Elmira, New York.  She was educated at The Academy of Our Angels in Elmira. She worked as a stenographer in the office of William R. Compton Sr. at his realty company. She also worked in the same capacity in his new position as US Marshall in 1898. They married on April 27, 1899.

They initially lived in Horseheads, where my father, William R. Compton, Jr. was born. They then moved to Elmira into a new home on College Avenue. In a biography of her husband, William R. Compton, in 1902, she was described as "a lady of superior culture and refinement, presiding with gracious hospitality over their pleasant home".

Upon the death of her husband in 1912, she apparently struggled financially and had to sell the home in Elmira, moving to Hudson Falls, New York where she is listed in the 1920 census as a "county social worker".  She met and married Orson Culver Richards in that area and married him in Elmira on November 15, 1922. Orson was the civil engineer for Hudson Falls Village, the township of Kingsbury, Washington Co., NY.

1922 passport photo

On Feb. 1, 1926, she and Orson are listed as Minnewaska ship arrival passengers from New York into London.  On 16 Mar 1926, she and Orson are listed as arrival passengers to New York City from Cherbourg, France on the ship Ausonia.

In the Hudson Falls Village 1930 US Federal Census the following listing appears:
Richards, Orson, head, age 56, civil engineer, Washington County
Richards, Helen R., wife, age 52, occupation - none
Compton, Beulah, stepdaughter-in-law, age 26, high school teacher (married to my father William R. Compton, Jr.)

Orson C. Richards

They had no children, but lived in Hudson Falls at 30 River Street, a happily married couple. They had a summer cabin on Lake George.

An article from the Times Record, Troy, New York, Feb. 22, 1949 reads:

"Hudson Falls police are trying to catch hoodlums who raised havoc after entering the home of Mr. and Mrs. Orson C. Richards of 30 River Street, who are vacationing in Florida. The prowlers gained entry by breaking a pane of glass in a kitchen window and when inside they dumped drawers in all rooms of the house, opened cans of food and broke radios."

I have a letter dated June 25th 1949 addressed to Mrs. William R. Compton (my mother), McLean, Virginia mailed from Hudson Falls, NY:

"Dear Norma,  Thank you so much for the letter and the snapshot of Billy [me].  He has grown and developed a great deal in the last three months, but he keeps his smiling side up anyway.  He certainly leans towards the distaff side when it comes to ringlets for I haven't seen any curls for at least two generations in my family.  The doctor wants me to be out of doors all the time possible so that is where I try to be and that is no hardship.  We have little pink climbing roses, a few other flowers, and the rest taken up with Maidenhair fern.  All the fall flowers may burst open and surprise us.  We still feel the effects of those terrible boys [see article above].  Maybe we may get over it in time, but a southern trip is out of the question this winter as things look now.  Love to the whole family in which Pop joins. Sincerely, Mother. (89 degrees in the shade at 2 pm)

I have a letter from Helen to her son William Jr. dated July 3, 1952:

"Dear William - have been reading your recent letters and thinking about you, my little boy, and now 50 years old the ninth.  You don't know what a comfort you are to me.  Of course, you know that I love you but you don't know how much and how I long to see you.  For your birthday present I am sending you two little diamond shirt studs which were your father's.  While they are not used as they once were, I think you will be glad to have them.  Just drop me a line often and tell me you are all well, it helps me very much to hear from you.  With my love to you all, Mother."

[I have a few other items that belonged to her in my possession. These include a Bible given to her by Amy Norris Compton on December 25, 1901. I have a certificate from The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution dated 21 Feb 1910 for Mrs. Helen R. Tubbs Compton, Chemung Chapter, descent from John Tubbs, soldier Revolutionary War. I also have a set of hairbrushes; three with "T" engraved on them and one with "HRT". I have an antique cradle from her great grandfather, Dr. Theseus Brooks. My mother has a set of silverware of the Tubbs family with "T" on them. I also have several photographs of Helen in her younger years, as well as of the home in Elmira.]

She died on January 9, 1953 in Hudson Falls. My father went to her funeral and left my mother to care for Anne (my sister) and me at home. I remember her vaguely coming to visit our home in McLean, probably in 1952 when I was 4. I only remember having a special dinner in our formal dining room with her and Orson. I remember her very gray-white hair, too. I remember Orson Richards sitting in the red leather chair in our den and me sitting and playing on his lap. I remember him smoking a pipe, too.

Rosella (Rose Ellen) Hennigar Laffin (1859-1930)

My relationship: Me > Norma Haynes (mother) > Lillian Laffin (mother) > Rosella Hennigar (mother) - my great grandmother

Rose Ellen Hennigar was the 5th of eight children born in Upper Kennetcook, Nova Scotia to John Anthony Hennigar and Letitia Densmore. She went by "Rosella" and was married at age 30 to Asa Laffin (age 27) on July 10, 1890 in Upper Kennetcook.

Asa was a bachelor farmer in nearby Northfield (also known as "Hennigar"). He had inherited his father's farm when he died in 1880. Asa and Rosella made their home and raised their family in Northfield. The farm consisted of 400-500 acres.  The family lived in a large wooden frame house (which is no longer standing) consisting of a living room, dining room, parlor, kitchen, pantry, and one bedroom on the main floor with three bedrooms upstairs.  Asa grew oats, wheat, barley, and vegetables on the farm and had a small orchard.  He also had a dairy herd as well as pigs, sheep, chickens, and horses. 

Rosella was described as quiet and peaceful, asking for nothing nor wanting nothing, and a good friend to everyone.
  
They had 7 children (6 daughters and 1 son):
Minnie Laffin (1891 - 1965), married Alfred Anthony
Nada Laffin (1892 - 1988), married William Turple
Amy Laffin (1894 - 1974), married (1) Alexander McLearn,       (2) Harry McCulloch
Lillian Laffin (1895 - 1984), married Thomas Haynes
Ruby Laffin (1898 - 1986), married George Densmore
Adeline Laffin (1901 - 1901), only lived 10 days
Addison Laffin (1903 - 1982), married Evelyn McKeil

Asa and Rosella Laffin with their children (L to R):

Ruby, Nada, Lillian, Amy, Minnie, Addison

Life on the farm for a farmer's wife is better described from this excerpt provided by the East Hants Nova Scotia Historical Society:

It seems that there is little written about the lives of women who lived on the farm. Most of the records are of the lives of their men. Yet they worked from dawn past dusk to feed, clothe and care for their families. 
They churned and made their own butter; gathered eggs from the hens; raised water in pails from the well, before there were pumps in the kitchen; they spun the wool, knit, darned, sewed and wove the cloth with which they made the clothing. Clothes were washed in the tub by hand and hung on the line. The stove in the kitchen, and the furnace, had to be stoked with wood frequently. Candles were made or oil lamps cleaned and filled. 
They picked berries and made jams, jellies, and preserves; pickled vegetables and dried fruit. Making soap was a tedious task. Most women worked in the vegetable garden, and had a flower garden also. She fed the hens, ducks and geese and assisted in many farm chores. 
Ten days were spent in bed following the birth of a child. Childbirth brought risks to the life of the mother and child. The families were very large. The oldest daughter(s) assisted in the raising of the younger children. Women of the neighborhood assisted those who were ill or in need. Religious faith helped them through their trials and tribulations. 

Rosella died at home peacefully with her daughter Minnie and Asa by her side (and Nada and Ruby downstairs) of congestive heart failure on August 27, 1930. 
My grandmother Lillian, living in Arlington, Virginia, was notified by Asa with a telegram. She is buried in the Anglican Church cemetery in Northfield with Asa, who died in 1947. 

A tribute written by the family was published in the newspaper:

There is someone who misses you sadly
And finds the year long since you went
There is someone who thinks of you daily
But tries to be brave and content.

So we shed a tear that is silent
And breathe a sigh of regret
For you were our dear mother and we'll remember
If all the world should forget.

Deep in our hearts you are fondly remembered
Sweet happy memories cling round your name
Fond hearts that loved you with truest affection
Always will love you in death just the same.

God saw that she was weary
The hills were hard to climb
So he closed her weary eyelids
And whispered Peace be Thine.

John TUBBS - Memorial Day Tribute

John Tubbs (1752 - 1778) 
My relationship: Me > William R. Compton II > Helen Tubbs > Samuel Murray Tubbs > Kelsey Tubbs > John Tubbs > John Tubbs (my 4th great grandfather)

Although I have a number of ancestors who fought in the French-Indian Wars, the Revolutionary War (on both sides), the War of 1812, and the Civil War, most all survived their service. John Tubbs was an exception.

He was born in 1752 in Lyme, Connecticut. He married Sarah Sims, (born 1743 in Lebanon Connecticut) on December 7, 1772.  They settled in the Kingston area of the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania. They had two children, sons John Tubbs, Jr. and George Tubbs. John is listed as a taxpayer in Kingston in 1776.

During the Revolutionary War, John enlisted on September 19th, 1776 in a call for volunteers in Capt Robert Durkee's company at Wyoming, PA., attached to Col John Durkee's regiment, of the 4th Connecticut line.

Private John Tubbs (one of fifty Pennsylvania riflemen) fought at the Battle Of Millstone on Jan. 20th 1777. He received a bounty for his service at the battle. He was also likely involved in the actions at Bound Brook, at Brandywine, at Germantown, and at Mud Fort and he may have wintered at Valley Forge as the company was present there. It is confirmed that he did winter encamp (1777 -1778) at Morristown, NJ.
The Battle of Wyoming (Pennsylvania) took place on July 3, 1778. [From ExplorePAhistory.com: The Battle of Wyoming and the massacre that followed, in July 1778, has been called the "surpassing horror of the American Revolution" because of the brutal and horrific acts committed by Iroquois Confederation warriors and their British and Loyalist allies against the Connecticut Yankees who had settled Pennsylvania's Wyoming Valley.] 

John died on July 3, 1778. There is conflicting information as to whether he died from dysentery contracted while at Morristown, or whether he died in the slaughter at the Battle of Wyoming which was fought on July 3, the same day of his death. John may have been too sick to take part. He may have indeed lingered on long enough to have served or may have been massacred.  His brother, Lebbeus Tubbs was in this battle, and survived.
John is buried at Kingston, PA about 4 miles from the site of the Battle.

Little Compton, Rhode Island Ancestors - No Compton's!

It is interesting to note that a number of ancestors of the Laffin, Hennigar, Densmore lines settled and lived in Little Compton, Rhode Island in the 1600's.  There are none of my Compton ancestors who lived there! The origin of the name of Little Compton is not known.

Some of my direct ancestors who lived there were:

1) William Pabodie and Elizabeth Alden (daughter of Mayflower passengers John Alden and Priscilla Mullin.
2) Sarah Pabodie (their daughter) and John Coe
3) Edward Burgess and Elizabeth Coe (their daughter)
4) Sarah Burgess (their daughter) who married Philip Mosher and moved to Nova Scotia.

5) Edward Richmond and Abigail Davis
6) Esther Richmond and Thomas Burgess
7) Nicholas Mosher
8) Abigail Tripp
9) Rebecca Wilcox

There were also some other direct ancestors that lived in Tiverton, Rhode Island, a town adjacent to Little Compton to the north. These include Mosher, Maxson, and Taber ancestors.

According to 17th century land evidence, Little Compton originally belonged to the Sakonnet (variations include Sogkonate, Seconit, Seaconnet, etc.) tribe, who were led by Awashonks, the cousin of Metacomet (commonly known as King Philip). The area was known by the name Sakonnet, which means “the black goose comes.”
The first European settlers in Little Compton were Englishmen from Duxbury, Massachusetts in the Plymouth Colony who sought to expand their land holdings. After first attempting negotiations with Awashonks, they petitioned the Plymouth Colony, which granted them their charter. In a series of lotteries beginning in 1674 and ending in the early 1680s, they divided the land in Little Compton into lots of standardized acreage and began settling there.
In 1682, the town was incorporated by the Plymouth Colony and renamed Little Compton. This is possibly a reference to Little Compton in Warwickshire, England. However, there is no direct evidence to substantiate this relationship. By 1747, Little Compton secured its own royal decree and was annexed to Newport County as a part of Rhode Island along with Tiverton and Bristol.

Little Compton Common Cemetery

Elisabeth Pabodie, the eldest daughter of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins of Mayflower fame, is buried in the Little Compton Common cemetery. The stones in this cemetery reflect a style of carving similar to that found both in Newport, R.I. and in Boston during the same time period.

From Wikipedia:
Elisabeth Pabodie (1623–1717), also known as Elisabeth Alden Pabodie or Elisabeth Peabody, was allegedly the first white woman born in New England. She was born Elisabeth Alden in 1623, the first-born child of the Plymouth Colony settlers John Alden and Priscilla Mullins, who were both passengers on the Mayflower in 1620. She married William Pabodie (Peabody), a leader of Duxbury, Massachusetts, on December 26, 1644. All thirteen of their children were born in Duxbury before Elisabeth eventually moved to Little Compton, Rhode Island in the 1680s. She died on May 31, 1717 in Little Compton and was buried in the cemetery on Little Compton Common.

                              Markers for Elisabeth Alden Pabodie (my 8th great grandmother)

Norris Matthew Compton (1836 - 1919)

Pedigree: Me > William R. Compton II > William R. Compton I > Norris Matthew Compton (my great grandfather)

From: "A Biographical Record of Chemung County, New York", 1902, page 53:
Norris M. Compton (son of Peter Compton and Amy Norris) was born in Veteran, NY on April 26, 1836 and pursued his education in Wyoming Seminary at Kingston, Pennsylvania, where he took a general course.  He followed the occupation of farming in Veteran, and was also engaged in general merchandise for a number of years, maintaining his residence in Sullivanville.  In 1902, he resided in Horseheads and occupied a clerical position in the office of his son (William R. Compton).  Norris and his wife Mary (Brigham) gave their children the best home training and such educational privileges as their means would allow, thus fitting them as well as possible for the practical and responsible duties of life.  They attended the Methodist Episcopal Church.  Norris, in his political views, was an active Republican, staunchly supporting the principles of the party but never seeking office.

Records of his Service in the Civil War:
Norris M. Compton, first class musician, of the 29th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers, enlisted at Elmira, New York on the 21st day of September, 1861 to serve 3 years. He was born in Chemung County in the state of New York, is 26 years of age, 5 feet 6 3/4 inches high, light complexion, light eyes, light hair, and by occupation when enlisted, a musician. During the last 2 months, said soldier has been unfit for duty for 40 days. Station: USA  General Hospital, Frederick, Maryland, May 19, 1862. I certify that I have carefully examined the said Norris M. Compton, a musician, and find him incapable of performing the duties of a soldier because of chronic laryngitis. Discharged this 19th day of May, 1862 at Frederick, Maryland.
Signed
Thomas J Dunoth and A. Apish, Surgeons.

Affidavit of Norris M. Compton 24 Sept 1881:
Norris M. Compton, age 45, present post office address Sullivanville, New York. For 5 years immediately preceding my enlistment into the service on 21 Sept 1861 I resided in Sullivanville, Chemung, New York. My occupation for those preceding 5 years was that of a musician teaching and leading funerals. Since my discharge from the service on the 19th day of May 1862, I have resided in Sullivanville, New York until I removed in the year of 1874 to Spencer, Tioga County, New York. I removed from that place in 1875 to Sullivanville, New York, then removed in the year of 1876 to Meadville, Crawford, Pennsylvania, where I lived until 1881, when I came back to Sullivanville where I now live. My occupations have been small grocery business and raising small fruits from 1862 to 1874, and then cigar business since then. The disabilities for which I claim this pension arise from chronic laryngitis. This was contracted in February, 1862 on the march from Frederick City, Maryland to Harpers Ferry. When we got to Winchester, Virginia, I was so bad that I was sent from Winchester to the Frederick City hospital, where I was discharged May 19, 1862. I have been unable to follow any occupation since discharge. My throat is in bad shape and an abscess which formed in my throat while in the Army has never healed and discharges every day. I often am I unable to do anything.

Norris Compton (right) and two dairy farm hands

Recollections from grandson John Compton Leffler [son of Lena Compton who was Norris's daughter and sister to William R. Compton, Sr.] written in March 1973:
"Norris M. Compton was the only child of Peter Compton and Amy Norris Compton, who survived infancy.  He was spoiled, a great whiner in his old age, and - as far as I could piece together - a dreamer with no business sense.  He was dapper in dress, had a fine handlebar mustache, loved fine horses, good cigars, and, I suspect, whiskey - which could be detected on his breath on occasion.  At those times, his wife, Mary (Brigham), would show signs of tears, and the tension could be felt.  He never went to church.
In his younger years, he did quite well at the family farm in Sullivanville, NY running a good dairy, and raising crops for feed.  In midlife, he took a plunge in a dairy farm on a high ridge 1000 feet above Seneca Lake.  It was a day's journey by carriage from Horseheads, where he lived during my childhood, and I loved going with him to the Hill Farm.  He was always fun on those trips and had a pocketful of hard candies to dispense enroute.  The view from the farm was breathtaking.
On the Hill Farm he was a pioneer in the import of Holstein cattle, noted for the quantity if not the quality of their milk.  I loved the dairy with its cool, sweet smell, and the shallow pans of milk set out in a dark corner for the cream to rise to the top.  This was before the day of pasteurization and separator machines, but grandfather was very fussy about the cleanliness in the cow barn and dairy. The cow's teats were washed before milking.  The milkers had to wash their hands every two cows! He employed 12 hands on Hill Farm.  He was the first President of the New York State Holstein Breeders Association.
The price of milk went down in the panic of 1907, and soon thereafter he could not meet his mortgage and lost Hill Farm and the old family farm at Sullivanville.  He was never the same after that, and after my grandmother's [Mary Brigham] death in 1910, he lived until 1919 - cared for in turn by his three daughters Ida, Edith and Lena, and financed by his prosperous son, William R. Compton [Sr.] of Elmira."

5 Generations (picture taken about 1908): Amy Norris Compton (widow of Peter Compton and mother of Norris Compton), Norris Compton, William R. Compton I (son of Norris Compton), Leon Compton (son of William), and Madeline Compton (daughter of Leon).

Obituary in the "Chemung Valley Reporter" 27 November 1919:

Norris M. Compton passed away at the home of one of his daughters, Mrs. J. R. Fitzgerald, at Naperville, IL, Saturday, aged 84 years. He had been spending much time with another daughter at Buffalo, Mrs. J. F. Leffler, and went to Naperville a few weeks ago. Always a resident of this county, he was among the well known men of the section. His ancestors, the Norris and Compton families, were among the pioneers of the southern tier, and composed that hardy stock which settled and developed the locality. Mr. Compton was born at Sullivanville and was a son of the late Peter and Amy Compton, the father being a minister. He died many years ago but the mother lived to be nearly 100 years of age and passed away about 10 years ago. She lived with her son in this village for many years. The deceased served in the Civil War as a musician in the 29th Pennsylvania Regiment and was a member of the Baldwin Post. A few years ago he was extensively engaged in farming and was among the first men in the county to introduce full blood Holstein cattle. He was one of the organizers and the first president of the Chemung Valley Holstein Breeder's Association. He was engaged for several years as a clerk in the U. S. Marshall's office in Elmira. Following the death of his wife a few years ago, Mr. Compton had apartments at the Platt House. Deceased was the father of the late William R. Compton, prominent as a Republican political leader in this county and for several years U.S. marshall for this district. He is survived by three daughters - Mrs. J. Fitzgerald of Naperville, IL, at whose home he passed away; Mrs. Lewis H. Lent of Richfield Park, NJ; Mrs. Lena Leffler, wife of Rev. John F. Leffler, pastor of the Normal Park Methodist church at Buffalo.

Joseph Hanes (Abt 1740 - 1820)

Pedigree: Me > Norma Haynes > Thomas N. Haynes > Robert Hanes > John Hanes > Joseph Hanes (my 3rd great grandfather)

The first Hanes to settle in the Kennetcook area of Douglas, Hants County, Nova Scotia was Joseph Hanes. He was allegedly from England and was born around 1740. He first appears in the 1791 tax assessment records as a farmer at Windsor, NS. He was probably a tenant on one of the land grants made to Halifax residents or military officials. He was appointed the pound-keeper for Douglas Township in 1800. A document dated March 21, 1810 includes a warrant in favor of Joseph Haines for 500 acres in Hants County for himself and his family. An additional land grant in 1814 of 900 acres was recorded in the District of Colchester, Halifax County for Joseph Haines (500 acres), John (son, farmer of Douglas - 200 acres) and William (son, farmer of Douglas - 200 acres).

Joseph Hanes married Jane ______ and had 5 children: 1) An unnamed child (mentioned in will), William, John (my 2nd great grandfather), Joseph, and Robert. His will was dated March 29, 1818.

In the name of God Amen, this 29th day of March 1818, I, Joseph Hanes, of Douglas in the County of Hants and Province of Nova Scotia, yeoman., being sick in body but of good and perfect memory, thanks be to Almighty God to make constitute ordain and declare this my last will and testament in manner and form following...
First I give and commit my soul to Almighty God, who gave it and my body to be buried in a decent Christian like manner near to my child at William Smith, Esq. burying place by my executors hereafter to be named...
I give and bequeath to my well-beloved  wife, Jane Hanes one third part of any land during her natural life and at her decease to be the property of my two sons, Joseph and Robert.  All my household furniture except two beds and bedding, which I give to my sons Joseph and Robert - also one cow and three ewe sheep and the use of a good gentle mare when she wants to ride. She my said wife to be kept and taken care of by my two sons, Joseph and Robert, while she lives the articles bequested to my wife to be at her own disposal, whenever she pleases.
I give and bequeath to my son William Hanes, a small young horse worth about 10 pounds.
I give and bequeath to my son John Hanes, one mare and ten sheep.
I give and bequeath to my sons Joseph Hanes and Robert Hanes all my land with 150 acres of 200 acres that I have got of my son William. Also two horses and 20 sheep and two beds and bedding, these my two sons Joseph and Robert to take care of and provide for my wife their mother so long as she lives and to bury her decently at her decease.
I give and bequeath to my granddaughter, Sarah Jane Hanes, daughter to my son John 50 acres of land of the 200 acres I got of my son William and if she dies before she comes to age the said 50 acres to revert to my son John Hanes.
I will and desire that my farming utensils of every kind plows, harrows carts, sleds etc. etc. be left on the farm I now live on, so long as any of my son does occupy it and if any of the said articles remains when my children leave this farm the said articles to be equally divided between my sons, John, Joseph and Robert. And I do constitute and appoint and ordain my trusty and well beloved sons Joseph Hanes and Robert Hanes and my neighbor William Smith, Esq. to be sole executors to this my last will and testament...
N.B. My sleigh and harness I give to my wife.
N.B. The mare called the kicking mare to be sold and what ever she sells for to be equally divided between my wife and children.
Signed Joseph Hanes, his mark.

Joseph Hanes died on January 8, 1820 in Douglas Township. His estate was proved at Windsor, N.S. with an inventory dated Jan 29, 1820. The executors of his estate were William Smith (a neighbor), and sons Robert and Joseph Hanes. He was presumably buried in the William Smith Esq. Burying Ground, as requested in his will. His wife, Jane, died at age 88 on January 16, 1845 in Hants County.

Inventory: Total value 238 pounds, 15 shillings, 3 pence. Major items included 1 pair fat oxen, 1 horse six years old, 1 mare 14 years old, 1 lame mare six years old, 1 mare 4 years old, 1 colt 2 years old, 26 sheep, 16 hogs, 1 mare 4 years old, 1 ox cart, 1 horse cart, 1 plow, 1 sleigh and harness, 13 bushels of oats, 1 horse sled, 3 axes, 35 bushels of potatoes, 15 pounds flax, 29 yards cloth, 4 beds and bedding, 2 tables, 8 chairs, 1 looking glass, etc.

Source: Some information from: "Rawdon and Douglas - Two Loyalist Townships in Nova Scotia" by John Victor Duncanson, 1989.

Mary Louise BRIGHAM (1839-1910)

Pedigree relationship: Me > William R. Compton II > William R. Compton > Mary Louise Brigham Compton (wife of Norris Compton) - my great grandmother.

Mary Louise Brigham was born in Cherry Valley, Otsego, NY on November 11, 1839. She was the daughter of Phineas Brigham and Eliza Johnson.
In the early 1850's the family moved to Elmira, Chemung, NY where Mary finished school. An interesting note in the  Elmira Sunday Telegram from an 1889 article read in part:"It was among the very last days of the old Baldwin street Elmira academy that [Norris Compton] secured his education, and there he met his fate in one who became his wife.... The pupils and teachers of those days are widely scattered now, but wherever any of them are, you may be sure they will remember, certainly, the brightest and prettiest girl of her day, Mary Brigham, blond-haired, blue-eyed, rosy cheeked, Mary Brigham.

She married Norris Matthew Compton on March 6, 1856 in Elmira and the couple had 5 children: Ida Louise (born 1857), William Randall (born 1860), Johnson Brigham (born 1863), Edith Mary (born 1875) and Lena May (born 1879).

Mary Louise Brigham Compton

Some interesting comments about Mary were made by her grandson, John Compton Leffler - son of Lena, for which I am so grateful as it describes her personality and character: "Mary Brigham Compton, wife of Norris, was my grandmother.  Charming, hospitable, a good cook - she nevertheless, presided over her household with real strength. She bore two sons and three daughters.  Aunt Ida was the eldest, the image of her mother, a farmer's wife in northern Illinois, raising five children, working hard in the kitchen, growing her own vegetables, making her own soap, milking two cows, and, with her daughters, feeding 25 thrashers at harvest time.  Number 2 child was Johnson Brigham Compton, who died of TB at 21.  I never saw him.  No. 3 was William R. Compton - prosperous, unhappy in his first marriage, but a generous son and brother.  He was particularly fond of his baby sister, Lena, my mother.  The silver set, marked "C", was his wedding present at my parents marriage in 1898.  There were 16 years between him and my Aunt Edith, who was No. 4.  Not wanting to raise her alone, mother Lena was born two years later.  Grandpa Norris called these two his "buckwheat" crop, because they came later!
Grandma [Mary] Compton did not live too far from us - a few hours by train on the Erie Railroad - and the regular summer visits continued all my childhood. Usually the other aunts and cousins came while we were there.  How grandma took care of us I don't know - but it did make us a close-knit family.
Grandma Compton presided over that bulging household and was definitely the queen.  Her word was law, and we knew it instinctively.  Yet, she had compassion and a real sense of humor.  I remember the time when two of my cousins and I swiped one of Uncle Will's [William Compton, Sr] big, black cigars, and went behind the barn and smoked it - and became very ill.  Grandma was in the kitchen.  She stuck our heads over a washtub, mopped our sweating faces, laughing quietly as she did so.  Then she interceded with our parents, who were about to administer corporal punishment, saying: "I think they've learned their lesson." We had.  I can't smoke a cigar to this day!  But I suspect she also said a word to old "Nor" (as she called him) and son Will about being bad examples.

Her obituary in the Elmira Star Gazette followed her death on May 8, 1910 (2 months after the death of her mother-in-law, Amy Norris Compton):

John Compton Leffler described his impressions of the death and funeral:

"My first experience with death was at Grandma's going.  Mother [Lena] was needed, so she took us out of school and we went to Horseheads.  Aunt Edith was there too, but she did nothing but cry.  I remember the closed door to Grandma's room, the occasional muffled cry of one dying of cancer, the doctor coming and going, and Grandfather chain-smoking cigars as he paced the front porch.  Aunt Helen [Tubbs], Uncle Will's wife, took us kids part of the time across the street to her big house.  But in that hushed house, it was then I learned that men and children had to leave the crisis of life and death to the women.

The funeral, again, a new experience, was a good old-fashioned Methodist funeral.  Grandma lay in her casket in the front parlor - opened only for such occasions of joy or sadness.  Her face was calm and beautiful, silhouetted against the coffin lid.  Old hymns were sung  - Abide with Me, Rock of Ages,  Nearer My God to Thee - we all sang them together.  The preacher talked too long, and quoted too much weepy poetry.  But at last it was over and we got into carriages for the 8 mile drive out to Sullivanville Cemetery.  It was near my birthday.  Lilacs were in bloom. The road was dusty.  The day was warm.  But somehow, there amid the lush green grass of early summer in that old country cemetery seemed to me to be a good place to rest after a hard life."

Thomas Laffin

Pedigree: Me > Norma Haynes > Lillian Laffin > Asa Laffin > Thomas Laffin > John Laffin > Thomas Laffin (my 4th great grandfather)

The earliest ancestor of the Hants County, Nova Scotia Laffin line was Thomas Laffin. It is alleged that Thomas Laffin was originally from Ireland. The first known record of him is recorded in the Craig Index of the 2nd Battalion of the 84th Regiment as Private Thomas Laffin in the 2nd Company. The muster roll for Dec. 1782 - Oct 1783 given in Logan shows that he was at the Command of Spanish River (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia).

At the conclusion of the Revolutionary War in 1783, land grants were given to the 84th Regiment British Loyalists in Hants County, Nova Scotia, which became Douglas township.

" The Commissioners Report of 1800 lists 700 acres ( Lot 7C ) on the Kennetcook River as the property of Thomas Laffin. This land was obtained by a grant of the regimental lands of the 84th Regiment and by purchase from other grantees. The land had been occupied since 1786 and included a house, 15 acres of land. There was also some stock. "

However, because of improper recording and loss of records, the land grants were escheated (transferred) back to the British government. This resulted, in time, with a successful petition to have proper title to these lands returned as transcribed below (with original spellings) in 1815:

 "Douglass 1 Jany 1815

"To the Honorable Speaker & the Honourable House of Assembly----
"Gentlemen,
    "The Pettition of your Subscribers Most respectfully Sheweth-------
That Whereas in the year of our Lord 1783, on the Proclamation of Peace between Great Britain and the United States of AMERICA, his Majestys late 84th regiment was discharged with a Promise of a certain proportion of Lands to Officers Non commisd officers & privates, free of any charges from his Majestys Government as a compensation for their Servises during the late contest with america, to such as would actually Settle and become Inhabitants: In consequence of which Colo. Small the commandant of sd. regt. Settled in the wilderness where they encountered many difiquelties Namely up cannetcook, five mile & Nine Mile Rivers, now called the Township of Douglass and because the Major part of sd. regit. did abscond and abandon their Lands, and a number of other persons (trying to avail themselves of the same Priviledge the Soldiers had promised) Settled in among us who were actually Soldiers, and on acct. of Colo. Smalls Grant not being fully Complied with according to Government wish, it became Escheated with that reserve, that those disbanded Soldiers whom had actually Settled Should be established in their former Promise, and the same lands, altho long ago Settled, is still Lying under the same escheet, & neither of your Petitioners, having any title to our farmes. We therefore pray the Lajislative body will represent our Situation to his Majestys Council & to the Gover[n]our, expressing our wish to obtain a Genel. Grant to the undersigned who were actually Soldiers as it was originally intended of their then Promised Locations for themselves & families, Previous to our new applications Sincere whereof a return will be laid before you with the names of the occupiors of the above description at present residing in the above Township, and your Petitioners will every pray--"
[The document is signed by 40 individual Loyalists...] including Thomas Laffin.


Information about the family of Thomas Laffin is lacking,and his date and place of death are unknown with no known headstone. A son, John Laffin, was born about 1797 and married Olive Anthony (the first child of John Anthony and Jane Densmore). John and Olive had 12 children, the first born being Thomas Laffin, father of Asa Laffin.

Deacon Cornelius Van Sickle (1740 - 1820)

My Relationship:  Me > William R. Compton II > William R Compton > Norris Compton > Peter Compton > Stephen Compton (wife Anna Van Sickle) > Cornelius Van Sickle (my 4th great grandfather)

Cornelius Van Sickle, the first child of Andrew Van Sickle  and Mary Landen, was born in Hunterdon County, in the State of New Jersey about the year 1741. He married (about 1768) his second cousin, Miss Anne Van Sickle, by whom he had eight children--all daughters.

Cornelius is said to have walked (before 1781) from Hunterdon to Sussex County with a willow cane which he cut in two and planted on the homestead in Wantage Township, (near what was called the "Van Sickle School House" in 1880) from which grew two large trees. He was very supple, as well as athletic, and many traditions exist in regard to his wonderful feats of strength and agility.

Many years prior to its legal formation, ministers from the Minisink Dutch Reformed Church held worship services in the Clove Valley. Traditionally, services were held in Helmet Titsworth’s barn or in private homes until a log chapel could be built. One church historian recorded a romantic anecdote that according to tradition that during summer months the congregation’s first pastor, the Rev. Elias Van Bunschooten, would ride down the countryside several miles below the Clove to a certain great spreading pine tree and there standing in its ample crotch would preach to gatherings on the hillside on Sunday afternoons.

Cornelius signed a petition for a new church, along with Garret Van Sickle, John Van Sickle, David Compton (father of Stephen Compton who was the subject of a previous post on this blog), Jacob Compton, and 50 others on 21 August 1787. It read as follows:

"To the Reverend Classis of New Brunswick:
   "Gentlemen - We, inhabitants of the Clove and its vicinity, Beg Leaf to present ourselves in the following manner: Our ancestors a few in number who formerly belonged to the Dutch Reformed Church settled Our County about forty years since under part of which time the Reverend Mr. Thomas Romin By permission of his Church Council and people of the Minissink preached some of his time amongst us. By his leaving them we Became again Destitute till the Reverend Mr. Bunscooting was installed in Minissink Congregations, who labored some time amongst us, whose labors to appearans has Been attended with the Blessings of God, So as we have upwards of thirty communicant members Amongst us. We the under Mentioned being Ardently Desirous of the propagation of the Gospel and of being settled under the Constitution of the Low Dutch Reformed Church, Beg permission that you would be pleased to Grant and Appoint the Reverend Mr. Elias Bunschooting or any parson or parsons you may think proper to assist us in appointing and establishing us proper Church officers in order to Rule and Represent us for the future, and Grant us such supplies in our Destitute state as you in your wisdom shall think Meet and Necessary. May the Blessing of Almighty God attend your Councills and we your petitioners are in Duty Bound to Pray."

The petition was approved and a log church was erected in 1787 at a site about 150 feet  south of the present day Clove Church. The Reverend Elias Van Bunschooten, having received the calling, then became the first pastor of this Church. The Church was organized with 50 members - 25 males and the same number of females. The Church grew and flourished until the death of Rev, Van Bunschooten in 1815. Another pastor could not be found and in 1818 the Clove Church became the First Presbyterian Church of Wantage. In 1829, the old log meeting house was torn down and a new church was erected at the present site.

Cornelius was elected Deacon of the Clove Dutch Reformed Church in 1801, and was distinguished for his piety.

He died in Sussex County, New Jersey, about the year 1820. His daughters, Anna Van Sickle, (wife of Stephen Compton), and Rachel Van Sickle removed to Western New York, and Elizabeth Van Sickle to Pennsylvania.

From "A history of the Van Sickle family in the United States of America"...pp.100-101

John McNeil (1736 - 1831)

John McNeil

My relationship: Me > Norma Haynes > Thomas Haynes > Annie McNeil > Matthew McNeil > John McNeil

John McNeil (McNeal) was born on 10 October 1766.  He was of Scottish ancestry.
In the Revolutionary War, he was in the 1st Company of the 2nd Battalion of the 84th Regiment of Great Britain and listed as a Drummer under the command of Col. John Small. They mainly saw action in the Atlantic Canadian provinces, the Carolinas and Georgia.

(Image courtesy of British Drums and Colours)

The company was disbanded in October, 1783 at Windsor, Nova Scotia. Many of the Battalion members became the original settlers of the Douglas and Rawdon townships in Hants County. John and Hector McNeil (possibly a brother) were granted 500 acres in Douglas.

The Commissioner's Report of 1800 listed 500 acres at Nine Mile River belonging to John McNeil.. This land had a house and barn. Twenty acres had been cleared and the stock consisted of 1 horse, 4 cattle, and 10 sheep.

John married Elizabeth McLearn (born 2 November 1769) on 1 January 1789. They had eleven children - eight boys and three girls.  Matthew McNeil (my great great grandfather) was born the third child and second son on 7 November 1795.

John died on June 25, 1831 in Douglas. His will was dated 2 days earlier on June 23, 1831 and the inventory of the estate was taken on August 29, 1831.

Abstract of will:
I, John McNeill, of Douglas, county of Hants do will and bequeath:
1) to my son James, the homestead farm with all my stock to be his forever with certain restrictions.
2) to my son John, if he should return home, the land west of the land now sold to Peter McDonald; and if my son should not return, then that property to the posterity of my son James.
3) to my loving wife Elizabeth, one end of my dwelling house with fireplace, and that my son James is to give her two cows and four sheep and to winter and pasture them for her and she is to have their increase, their use and benefit; to always have sufficient wood for her fireplace and to have water brought to her; to have the privileges of keeping a goose and fowls and also a pig; to have ten bushels of potatoes and five bushels of oats annually to feed them with; and my son James is at all times to provide mother with the provisions for the necessities of her maintenance during her natural life; and that my son James not sell, mortgage or convey his said estate during his mother's natural life; and if my son James should die without a lawful heir of his body, his part of the estate is to be sold and equally divided among his brothers and sisters after his mother's death.
4) to my daughter Eleanor, twenty shillings to buy her a gown to be paid by my son James.
5) to my daughter Ann, five pounds to be paid by my son James.
6) to my daughter Catharine, five pounds or one cow to be paid by James my son.
7) to my son Mathew, five pounds to be actually paid by my son James towards the Grant of his land.
8) to my sons William, Alexander, Daniel and Hugh, five shillings each to be their full share and portion of my property forever.
I do ordain and constitute my beloved wife Elizabeth to be my executrix and my beloved son James and my friend Alexander McPhee to be my true and lawful executors.
Will dated 23 June 1831.


Inventory of estate -  Total value: 392 pounds, 16 shillings, 6 pence.
Included:
Farm and crops - 300 pounds.
1 pair oxen
Steer, cows and calves
1 old mare
14 sheep, 11 lambs
7 hogs and 9 small pigs
Cartwheels, harrow, dung fork, pitch fork, 2 old axes
Crockery, pots, shovel and tongs
3 tables, 5 chairs, beds
Books

Comments: Many of my Nova Scotia ancestors were British Loyalists and fought for the Crown in the Revolutionary War. After the British defeat they were rewarded with land grants in Hants County, Nova Scotia.
John McNeil had a large family and appeared to have been a successful farmer in this primitive area. I especially like item # 3 above in his will outlining his bequests to his wife, Elizabeth.