A lesson learned about proof from the DAR AIR

DAR AIR? What's that, you might ask. When you submit an application for DAR membership you must prove your line from yourself back to your Revolutionary War Patriot. Every individual on the Lineage page of your application must have a date and place of birth, a date and place of death, and for the first three generations, must have the marriage date and place. Not only will you enter those items on the application form but you'll have to submit a supporting document proving each of them. It might sound all but impossible at first, but once you get looking in the right places, it's amazing how easy it is to find much of it... and how hard it can be to find the last few. Finding those last missing documents is the best part of this game, at least to me:)

Once your application is approved by the highly professional DAR Staff Genealogist, or Genie as we lovingly call them, you can then submit what's called a Supplemental Application for another Patriot. And you can keep on going and going. With each Patriot approved you earn the right to purchase a lovely little Ancestor Bar to pin on your DAR ribbon and insignia. The pin looks something like this, below.

Some of the ladies really enjoy the hunt for new ancestors! I know I do. I have just four so far with three more awaiting approval. But I've heard of ladies having 30, 40, or more! Here's a photo of a ribbon offered on eBay with a couple of ancestor bars, but not in the correct position. And yes, the order of the pins matters.

When you submit an application either to be a member or as an supplemental application after your original application, if you mess up and don't prove the name, date, or palace to the standards required, the Genie will send you an Additional Information Required letter, or AIR.

Recently I submitted two supplemental applications, one each for Isaac Workman and Peter Trautman. Each got an AIR. Bummer for me. But each one was an opportunity to learn and become a better genealogist. Read on!

When I got the AIR letter I must confess to being shocked. I knew this family cold. Knew them all because my Grandma Kelly talked about all of them as if they were still alive. Mom collected documentation on this line fore years and I've added to her treasure trove. So to have the Genie cast a shade of doubt on Elisha Workman as the son of John and to doubt John's date of death, well that was ... shocking.

How many times as genealogists do we have someone call us out on our conclusions? When was the last time someone called you out like that? And a high ranking professional genealogist at that! I had to take a moment to gather myself! Then I got to work:)

The problem with Isaac Workman's son John was that I found his probate file and worked off of that to determine that he died about 12 July 1859. The Genie writing the AIR pointed out that the previous application for Isaac through his son John used that date but exactly a year later: 12 July 1858. The AIR requested more information. I had no idea where the previous app got the date they did so I had to go look and try to determine what they used as a source. Luckily it was obviously the obituary of John's sister, Margaret, and I had that at hand. I tried to reconstruct the original source and had to contact an older researcher who had known Margaret of the obit. He said that it had been copied out of an old family bible. Well! It is no big stretch of the imagination to see where coping a date out of an old bible could go wrong.

What I used as the source for the death date was John's probate file. From the doctor's bill, it could be seen that the last visit to Isaac was July 11 of that year. The bill from the undertaker stated that he delivered a coffin on July 12th. Therefore, it could be concluded that he died on or about 12 July 1859. Hands down, the probate file was a better document that the missing bible record with the date passed down from generation to generation.

I knew I was solid on the probate file and the date of death so I started writing that up as I took time to think about the best way to prove that Elisha was the son of John. Of course the probate file contained a good number of documents that named John, but the Genie asked if there might be another John in the area: how did we know that this Elisha was the son of this John? I had to admit it: it was a good question.

The big red flag was the 1850 census that enumerated a John Workman in the dwelling place listed adjacent to John Workman in Allegany Co., MD. We can't say that they "lived next to each other" and that proved anything because we don't know if that was what happened. Maybe the dwelling were 10 miles apart and over the hill. Can't tell from this census record. What we can say is that the two were enumerated in the 1850 census, one after the other on the same page.

And that isn't even the worst of it!! Elisha Workman, the son, is listed as 29 years old. John is listed as 50. That makes him 21 years too young! Good grief!

The only thing to do, I felt, was to search all of the census records for Allegany County, MD for 1850 and 1860 to see if there was any other male named John who was the correct age for our John. And there wasn't. Whew.

It might be said that one of the biggest conundrums of the DAR Genealogy Consultant is the Multiple Men of the Same Name. I groan audibly every time I run into it, and it happens a lot back before 1850. The same set of names are handed down from generation to generation results in more John and Elijah combinations that you want to see. And why is there a Cuthbert in every generation? What you're going to need is a spreadsheet, or a chart at least. Names on one side and records on the other, or in whatever combination works for you.

And the key, most of the time, is location. Where were they when that happened? The same man can not, luckily, be in two different residences at the same time. Just go ahead and plug it all in that spread sheet or chart and have faith that it will work out. And it will. Give it time to breathe, and make sure that you haven't overlooked any records. The check tax records, and land records and any other local records you can dig up. Go local!! Use Excel if you're comfortable, or a chart or table. Or just spread them all out on the floor. But get them out there so you can see them all. Then give it time. Don't be in too much of a rush with this.

That worked for me on the Isaac Workman AIR. Between the probate file and a thorough examination of the census records for all Elijah and John Workman in that location at that time, it all made sense and the puzzle was solved.

I was so happy when I got official word that my supplemental application had been verified. The in the blink of an eye, I ordered my ancestor bar for Isaac Workman!

Another time I'll share what happened with the Peter Trautman and his granddaughter. That would be the wife of Elisha Workman, Nancy Ann Trautman. It's another case where the census helped, along with a probate file.

The Workman Settlement land, Zhilman, Allegany Co., MD.

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Quick note on Isaac Workman

I've been in contact by email with a descendant of Isaac Workman, DAR and SAR Patriot, and of his grandson Elisha Workman. My great grandmother was sister to his ancestor and they both were children of Elisha. We've been going back and forth about a number of things, and our conversations reminded me of something, a finer point, about Isaac.

I've posted here previously about the Workman Military Lots in Allegany County, Maryland, and you can read that post here. And you can see how many of these lots the Workman family owned in the map below.

A section of the Frostburg State University military lot maps in Western Maryland.

There has been speculation that these lots were earned through military service, but they were not. I was hoping that they were and that the entire male side of the family had gone to war, united as one. What a good family story that would have made! But that was not at all what the records show. I checked everywhere, in Fold3, The National Archive, the DAR records and listing of their Patriots, FamilySearch and Ancestry. He was not in any of them.

What I did find is that Isaac Workman has been verified as a DAR Patriot based on an Oath of Allegiance he swore.

Here's what the Maryland Historical Society had to say about that particular Oath of Allegiance.

Oath of Fidelity:

Abstract                        The Oath of Fidelity was instituted by Laws of Maryland 1777, Chapter 20, An Act for the Better Security of Government.  Every free male 18 years and older was required to subscribe to an oath renouncing the King of England and to pledge allegiance to the revolutionary government of Maryland.  Those already engaged in military service were assumed to be loyal.  Quakers, Mennonites, and Dunkards were permitted to affirm.  There were several penalties associated with failure to obey the instructions of the ACT.  Magistrates neglecting to keep books and transmit them to the Governor were to be fined 500 pounds.  Persons expected to take the oath who did not do so were required, for the rest of their lives, to pay triple the ordinary tax on real and personal property.  They were forbidden to exercise and practice the trade of merchandise or to practice the law, physic or surgery, or the art of an apothecary, or to preach or teach the gospel, or to teach in public or private schools, or to hold or exercise within this state, any office of profit or trust, civil or military, or to vote at any election of electors or senators, or of delegates to the house of delegates.  Oaths were to be administered by the magistrates of each county before March 1, 1778.  One list of those who subscribed to the oath was to be kept at the county court and another sent to the governor and Council in Annapolis. 

Retrieved online January 18, 2013 at Maryland Historical Society, http://www.mdhs.org/findingaid/oaths-fidelity-or-oaths-allegiance-1775-1778-ms-3088

That's quite descriptive and informative. Men over 18 were required "subscribe" to an oath renouncing England and everything she had to offer. There was no going back now! The punishment for not doing so: for the rest of their lives they were to pay triple the ordinary tax on real and personal property. Yikes! This was serious. And look at that, they were from then forward forbidden from being a merchant, doctor, lawyer, pharmacist, preacher, or teacher. They couldn't hold office or vote either. This was serious stuff.

Isaac lived in Washington County when he took the oath. It was a county that was formed out of Frederick County to the east in 1776 and named for George Washington. (How patriotic is that?) Allegany County where the Workman family lived was formed out of Washington County in 1789 so it's quite possible that he lived in what's now Allegany County when he took the oath.

By the way, nice piece of trivia, the descendants of men who paid the 1783 tax assessment are eligible for the SAR and the DAR because a part of it went supply the Revolutionary War effort. Here's a link to the an index of that tax roll. If you want to look for an ancestor you'll be best served by looking at all of the entries.



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Surname Saturday: Her name was Lydia Merrill

Look at the clock! It's Saturday all over again, and time for my all-time fav blogging prompt from GeneaBloggers called Surname Saturday. To my way of thinking, his a super good way to post because each week I go one line deeper on the tree. Because I'm a second generation genealogist and Mom has built out a splendid tree, my job is to get the word out, and learn on the job. This is a perfect exercise to learn the tree, as well as the near perfect cousin bait! Calling all cousins:)

This week's exercise is the ancestry of Lydia Merrill. Poor Lydia. I feel bad for her because she yet another woman on the tree about whom we know next to nothing. You'll see as you read on.

1. Diane Kelly Weintraub

2. Francis Patrick " Pat" Kelly (1916 - 2007)
3. Virginia Williams, living and loving it

4. John Lee "Lee" Kelly (1892 - 1969)
5. Helen Gertrude Zeller Kelly ( 1894 - 1985)

10. Gustav William "Gus" Zeller (1858 - 1927)
11. Moretta Workman Zeller (1859 - 1946)

22. Elijah Workman 1816 - 1864
23. Nancy Ann Troutman 1826 - 1882
Elijah was born and died in Zihlman, Allegany County, MD, which is really hard to find on the map. The Workman Farm, mentioned below, is located near here. Zihlman is located near Mt. Savage and Frostburg, Maryland. You can just about see Zihlman from where Mom now lives, especially when the leaves are off the trees.
Nancy Ann Troutman was born in Wellersburg, Somerset County, PA.
Here are their children:
Amanda Workman 1848 - 1865
Caspar Workman 1849 - 1949. He married Margaret Holtzman Merrill. They both died in Frostburg.
Benjamin Workman 1851 - 1869
John Franklin Workman 1857 - 1930. He married Mary Anne Mealing. They both died in Frostburg.
11. Moretta Workman Zeller 1859 - 1946
Mary Ann Workman 1861 - 1939. She married Peter Pressman. They both died in Frostburg.
Joseph Workman 1863 - 1894. He died in Frostburg.

44. John Workman 1779 - 1859
45. Amelia Combs about 1789 - ????
John was also born in Zihlman but died just up the hill in Frostburg. Presumable, Amelia Combs was born close by Zihlman and also died in Frostburg, but proof remains elusive. Very recently - like yesterday - a Combs family history has come into my possession, so this might get updated real soon:)
John was a farmer and in the 1840 US Census owned one slave. This was the first record of him owning slaves.
They had these children:
Rebecca Workman 1809 - before 1908. She married Solomon Hansel. They both died in Frostburg.
Kate Workman 1810 - ????. She married Noah Trimble from Wellersburg PA.
Joseph Workman 1812 - 1879. He married Louisa Knabenshue from Keyser, Mineral County, WVa.
Isaac Workman 1814 - 1897
22. Elijah Workman 1816 - 1864
Margaret Workman 1819 - 1908. She married James P. Hannah and then Harry Stevens.
John L. Workman 1821 - 11873. He married Druzilla Workman.
Stephen Workman 1823 - ????.
Cuthbert Workman 1825 - 1882. He married Nancy Conkle. He died in Danville, Knox, County, OH.
Nimrod Workman 1828 - 1870.
William Combs Workman 1831 - 1894. He married Clara Sophia Winebrenner and then Rebecca Sheffiff.

88. Isaac Workman (Jr.) 1742 - 1827
First wife unknown, mother of John, above
89. Second wife, Lydia Merrill 1743 - ????
Isaac was born in Somerset County, NJ and after his second wife, Lydia Merrill died, and he moved to Danville, Knox County, OH to be with his sons and daughter. He died there.
It is generally believed that it is this Isaac Workman who on 28 Aug 1776, joined the Revolutionary War in the state of Maryland, Washington County, serving under Andrew Bruce, also from Washington County. Much needs to be done by me to investigate his service further.
And notice how many started moving to Knox County, Ohio! Need to investigate what was so enticing to attract them. Bet it's farming.
Lydia was born in Allegany County in Western Maryland in 1743. It was the frontier and wilderness then. A rough life, to be sure. She first married Alexander Hanna about whom we know nothing. She died in Churubusco, Whitley, Indiana, United States. Presumably, and maybe, she moved on west with her children when they moved to Knox County in Ohio. But how did she get to Indiana... before her second husband Isaac died? Whitley County is almost directly west of Knox County by about 150 miles or so. Curious.
These are their known children:
Stephen Workman 1767 - 1865. Born in Zihlman and died in Union Township, Knox County, OH. He married Jane Graham who was born in Ireland.
William Workman 1769 - ????
Rebecca Workman 1773 - 1835. Born in Zihlman and died in Union Township, Knox County, OH. Married Solomon Robinson.
44. John Workman 1779 - 1859
Lydia Workman 1782 - ????
Joseph C. Workman 1782 - 1852. He was born in Frostburg and died in Danville, Knox County, OH. He married Sarah Conner.

Supposedly Lydia Merrill's father was a Phillip Merrill. But that's pretty sketchy information. Where was he born? Who knows. If Lydia was born in Allegany County in 1743, them presumably he and his unnamed wife were living there at the time. Subtracting 20 years from Lydia's birth means that her father might have been born about 1720-ish. And that's about all we have.

 

 

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Surname Saturday: The Workman Family

Off we go on another Surname Saturday, a dandy blogging prompt from GeneaBloggers! This week we're looking back to follow the Workman family to when they spelled their name in the Dutch way, Woeterman. We'll see another of my four Revolutionary War ancestors and follow along as this line makes its way to Western Maryland and to Military lots, and plops down comfortably on the Workman Farm, as well as near and in the town of Frostburg, just as all my other ancestors did. So here we go!

1. Diane Kelly Weintraub

2. Francis Patrick " Pat" Kelly (1916 - 2007)
3. Virginia Williams, living and loving it

4. John Lee "Lee" Kelly (1892 - 1969)
5. Helen Gertrude Zeller Kelly ( 1894 - 1985)

10. Gustav William "Gus" Zeller (1858 - 1927)
11. Moretta Workman Zeller (1859 - 1946)

22. Elijah Workman 1816 - 1864
23. Nancy Ann Troutman 1826 - 1882
Elijah was born and died in Zihlman, Allegany County, MD, which is really hard to find on the map. The Workman Farm, mentioned below, is located near here. Zihlman is located near Mt. Savage and Frostburg, Maryland. You can just about see Zihlman from where Mom now lives, especially when the leaves are off the trees.
Nancy Ann Troutman was born in Wellersburg, Somerset County, PA.
Here are their children:
Amanda Workman 1848 - 1865
Caspar Workman 1849 - 1949. He married Margaret Holtzman Merrill. They both died in Frostburg.
Benjamin Workman 1851 - 1869
John Franklin Workman 1857 - 1930. He married Mary Anne Mealing. They both died in Frostburg.
11. Moretta Workman Zeller 1859 - 1946
Mary Ann Workman 1861 - 1939. She married Peter Pressman. They both died in Frostburg.
Joseph Workman 1863 - 1894. He died in Frostburg.

44. John Workman 1779 - 1859
45. Amelia Combs about 1789 - ????
John was also born in Zihlman but died just up the hill in Frostburg. Presumable, Amelia Combs was born close by Zihlman and also died in Frostburg, but proof remains elusive. Very recently - like yesterday - a Combs family history has come into my possession, so this might get updated real soon:)
John was a farmer and in the 1840 US Census owned one slave. This was the first record of him owning slaves.
They had these children:
Rebecca Workman 1809 - before 1908. She married Solomon Hansel. They both died in Frostburg.
Kate Workman 1810 - ????. She married Noah Trimble from Wellersburg PA.
Joseph Workman 1812 - 1879. He married Louisa Knabenshue from Keyser, Mineral County, WVa.
Isaac Workman 1814 - 1897
22. Elijah Workman 1816 - 1864
Margaret Workman 1819 - 1908. She married James P. Hannah and then Harry Stevens.
John L. Workman 1821 - 11873. He married Druzilla Workman.
Stephen Workman 1823 - ????.
Cuthbert Workman 1825 - 1882. He married Nancy Conkle. He died in Danville, Knox, County, OH.
Nimrod Workman 1828 - 1870.
William Combs Workman 1831 - 1894. He married Clara Sophia Winebrenner and then Rebecca Sheffiff.

88. Isaac Workman (Jr.) 1742 - 1827
First wife unknown, mother of John, above
Second wife, Lydia Merrill 1743 - ????
Isaac was born in Somerset County, NJ and after his second wife, Lydia Merrill died, and he moved to Danville, Knox County, OH to be with his sons and daughter. He died there.
It is generally believed that it is this Isaac Workman who on 28 Aug 1776, joined the Revolutionary War in the state of Maryland, Washington County, serving under Andrew Bruce and also from Washington County. Much needs to be done by me to investigate his service further.
And notice how many started moving to Knox County, Ohio! Need to investigate what was so enticing to attract them. They settled well there and there's even a Workman Cemetery, screen shot below.
These are their known children:
Stephen Workman 1767 - 1865. Born in Zihlman and died in Union Township, Knox County, OH. He married Jane Graham who was born in Ireland.
William Workman 1769 - ????
Rebecca Workman 1773 - 1835. Born in Zihlman and died in Union Township, Knox County, OH. Married Solomon Robinson.
44. John Workman 1779 - 1859
Lydia Workman 1782 - ????
Joseph C. Workman 1782 - 1852. He was born in Frostburg and died in Danville, Knox County, OH. He married Sarah Conner.

Screen Shot of FindAGrave for the Workman Cemetery in Danville, Knox County, Ohio.

176. Isaac Workman (Sr.) 1710 - 1827
177. Femmentie (Pheobe) Rangel 1712 - ????
Isaac (Sr.) was born in Brooklyn. The couple both moved together to Somerville, Somerset County, New Jersey. Isaac also might have served in the Revolutionary War because when Military Lots were apportioned he was given title to Lot # 3656. Later he transferred title to his son, Isaac (Jr.).
Their children were:
88. Isaac Workman (Jr.) 1742 - 1827
Fannie Workman ???? - ????
Sarah Workman 1734 - ????
Rebecca Workman ???? - ????

Click to enlarge and see the Military Lot Map for Allegany County, Maryland and find the Workman Lot #3536.

 

352. Peter Derick Woerterman christened 1688 - ????
Married: Unknown. ???? - sometime between 1727 to 1735.
It is thought that Peter was born in Brooklyn, as was his wife. It is believed that Peter's wife died before he moved to Allegany County, MD.
Their children, known, are:
176. Isaac Workman (Sr.) 1710 - 1827
Cornelius Workman (Woeterman) 1715 - ????. Most likely candidate for the the one who started the Workman Farm in Allegany County, MD.
Peter Workman 1720 - ????. Probably born in New Jersey.
Margaret Workman 1720 - ????. Also probably born in New Jersey.

705. Richard John (Dirk Jan) Woeterman about 1630 - after 1694
706. Marrietje Teunis Denyse ???? - before 1647
Richard was born in Holland and immigrated to America in 1647, unmarried at that time. The date is figured because in 1687 he took the oath of allegiance at Brooklyn stating he had been there for 40 years. On 10 April 1661 he and his wife Marrietje Teunis Denyse were admitted to the Brooklyn Dutch Church. At that time he owned property in Brooklyn and operated the Brooklyn Ferry. He was made town officer in 1673.
Their 17 children were:
Haramita Woeterman, Femmetje Woeterman, Jan Derick Woterman, Geertruy Woeterman, Teunis Derick Woeterman, Paulis Woeterman, Catrherine Woeterman, Dennis Woeterman, Lysbeth Woeterman, Annetje Woeterman, Marretje Woeterman, 352. Peter Derick Woerterman christened 1688 - ????, and Lorewyck Derick Woeterman.

1408. John William Workman (Jans William Woeterman) 1598 - before 1637
1409. Hanna (Harmetie) ???? - after 1685
It is generally believed that John William Workman came from England to Holland because of religious persecution at the time of the Putitan upheavals. In Holland he blended in to life and culture taking the Dutch version of his name: Jans William Woeterman.
They had these children and possibly more:
Elizabeth Jans Woeterman born by about 1630 - ????. She married Pieter Jansen Noorman, born in Norway. Pieter and Elizabeth were some of the first settlers of Bushwick and owned 130 acres there along the East River in what is now Brooklyn. When Pieter died she married Joost Jansen Cocquit.
705. Richard John (Dirk Jan) Woeterman about 1630 - after 1694
Annatje ????- ????


The line back beyond this point is unclear. Looking to my main resource for the Workman family, Workman Family History, by Thelma Chidister Workman, (Salt Lake City, Utah : Publishers Press, 1962) as well as the resources for the above line from Isaac Workman (Jr.) back, there is every indication that John William or his father came to Holland because of religious persecution. This theory has been part of the US Workman family lore, and is still spoken of even today. The natural conclusion, thought not proven in documentation as of my knowledge, is that they came from the Workman family in Gloucester, England.

WOW! This is a long one. Thanks for looking:)

Moretta Workman Zeller 1859 - 1964 my GGM.

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