Tag: Genealogy

Tracing the Dunham Slaves, Lydia–An Update to The Ugly Truth: Slavery in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

July 20, 2018

“My Negro Wench Lydia”  Not long ago, I learned an ugly truth about slavery in New Jersey and how it persisted so much longer than I ever knew.  Unable to change the past, I volunteered to help in the present.  I wrote about New Jersey’s slow road to abolition in “The Ugly Truth” — a June 2018 article … More Tracing the Dunham Slaves, Lydia–An Update to The Ugly Truth: Slavery in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

The Ugly Truth: Examining Slavery in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

June 28, 2018

For a descendant of post-Civil-War immigrants from Germany, finding slavery in your family tree is pretty shocking.  Granted, this discovery came on my husband’s side of the family, but that makes it no less difficult to learn.  Most of his relations were from the North, and the few relations from Virginia moved to the North … More The Ugly Truth: Examining Slavery in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

The Life of Revolutionary War Patriot, Captain Adam Hope

December 13, 2017

In 1765, a man named Adam Hope arrived in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.   Not much is known today about Adam Hope’s history or why he came to Hunterdon County. In fact, his parents remain a mystery. Slightly bit more is known about from where he came.  A small grain of evidence suggests he may have come by way … More The Life of Revolutionary War Patriot, Captain Adam Hope

Hopes of Hunterdon County, New Jersey

December 13, 2017

Not enough has been written about the Hope family of Hunterdon County, New Jersey.  I know.  I have looked. For my children, the Hopes (though Sarah Dunham Hope wife of Adam Hope) provide a gateway family to Mayflower ancestry. With the 400th year of the Mayflower’s arrival in Massachusetts rapidly approaching, my goal is to have fully documented ancestry … More Hopes of Hunterdon County, New Jersey

Circling Back to those Virginia Roots Washington and Elias Marks: Part 2 of Lost in Virginia

November 21, 2017

This post is a continuation of my research into the Marks family of Virginia.  I conduct my genealogical research by circling.  I research anyone and everyone connected to my subject.  And my circles most often grow bigger, and sometimes much bigger, before they zero in on what I really want to know–in this case, how … More Circling Back to those Virginia Roots Washington and Elias Marks: Part 2 of Lost in Virginia

Scott’s Parents Were Total Strangers When They Met or Were They?

March 8, 2017

Scott’s parents will be married for 50 years this July.  What a feat!  They fell in love during the 1960s.  Each came from separate parts of the country to attend a small liberal arts college in Iowa called Coe. They had never met, nor heard each other’s names.  Neither knew what to expect from this … More Scott’s Parents Were Total Strangers When They Met or Were They?

Selling liquor without a license is illegal, and that hasn’t changed much for the last 200 years

November 21, 2016

Fines for selling liquor without a license these days can run into the thousands and the offense is chargeable (at least in my state) as a gross misdemeanor.  Well it turns out, that in 1814, alcohol sales were not that much different.  If you wanted to sell spirits, you needed a license or you could be charged.  One … More Selling liquor without a license is illegal, and that hasn’t changed much for the last 200 years