Backtracking and Correcting/Married at First or at Last

Digging deeper and verifying the info I've found I've encountered those pesky errors which if perpetuated throw everyone off, and result in lost time an money.

1. The first error can be filed under don't believe everything you read. Mistakes can appear even in the best books. The above snippet states Rebecca was married to Joseph when she was actually married to James Forgey son of Samuel Forgey. Need to strike this Joseph from my records for Augusta, Virginia.
2. The next error seems to come under the heading repetition. Sometimes when someone is transcribing a record they may repeat a name in the wrong place. I believe Forgey was repeated twice at some point by someone transcribing a document. We know James Forgey was married to Rebecca Clements. Her sister Margaret was said to have been married to Samuel Forgey. Now I am finding she was likely married to Samuel Davidson . So it looks like there was a repetition error and his name was misrecorded as Forgey. So Elizabeth Forgey born 1781 may have been the daughter of Samuel Forgey Jr. and Martha Campbell, instead of Samuel Forgey and Margaret Clements. 

So now I believe I am on the right track. I am leaning towards believing that it is more likely than not that the William, Joseph, and James I have tracing are descendants of Samuel and Sara Forgy. It's seems Samuel Forgy and Sara Wilson were married in 1762 in Paxtang, PA. You may say how can this be when their son James Forgy was born in 1752? The will states Sara was James Forgey's mother not stepmother? Well some people in those days could be said to have married at first and other married at last. Meaning some were not officially legally married when some of their children were born. They may have lived in backwoods areas where it was not easy to get a marriage performed. Some may have worried about the legality of a backwoods marriages and may have gone through the ceremony again later also? They may not have had a church wedding the first time and had a second church marriage? In this case they may have married in Ireland had some question about the legality of their marriage for some unknown reason? It's also possible that Sara was James Stepmother and this fact wasn't stated?

So we have the couple Samuel and Sara and no William listed as a child? As it turns out Sara was pregnant in 1770 when the will was written and we don't know the name of the child? Could have been our William?

Another unknown is the names of all of Samuel Forgey II children. We also don't have the names of Samuel the 3rd's children. With all these unknowns it's difficult to place William, Joseph, and James. I believe the origins of these men will be found when we find out more about all of the Samuels in Samuel and Sara's line and get the name of their unborn child

Mississippi Burning/Could Grandpa's name be wrong?

I've been a lot of places on the Net since my last post about the Mississippi Forgeys. My job as one of the unofficial Forgey genealogists means I need to place all of the early familie with their correct lines. This sort of one name research in early American records can be very interesting and lead all sorts of places; and who knows may lead to breakthroughs in my own line.
So here we are a couple days later.
This is the path I took since my last post.

History of the state of California
 and biographical
 record of the Sierras,

1. I looked at BLM GLO record for Mississippi and found this which has James Forgey and William both purchasing land in Lincoln County, Mississippi. Under the alternate spelling Forgay we find all 3 men, ie Joseph, James, and William buying land on the same day at the same land office.  William and Joseph buy land in closest proximity. Joseph buys land a little north of there. At this point I am ready to declare William as father of both Joseph and James as per these records and the 1800, 1820 Census.
2. My case for this seemed to fall apart (crash and burn) at this point.I then checked for Forgay family biographies at google books. I found one for James Forgay's son Nathaniel B. Forgay. According to this 1906 biography Nathaniel Forgey's grandfather was Samuel Forgey who immigrated to the south from Scotland and fought in the Revolutionary War. It confirms what both the 1850 and 1860 Census say about James Forgey being born in Kentucky. It also states that James wife was Elizabeth Brown. There are several contradictions in facts in the bio. Elizabeth's birth place is given as Georgia in 1850 and 1860, and is given as Kentucky here. There are other factual contradictions presented here too. So we wonder if Samuel was actually the father of James or his grandfather? Or was the name Samuel wrong all together?
3. That was yesterday; today I have searched feverishly for a Samuel in early 19th Century Kentucky. It was stated in the Gardner Family history that there was a Samuel Forgey in 1810 Kentucky? I have not found one. There is only a Samuel Faris.
4. I then made a broader search for Samuel checking early Mississippi Territorial records at Ancestry.com and nothing surfaces there either.
5. My search for Samuel's has brought me to Samuel Forgey born 1735 who married a Margaret Clements. This family had settled in Augusta, Virginia in the 1700's. This family looks very promising because they seem to have used the Forgay spelling sometimes. They also had associations with Buncombe, North Carolina and Kentucky. They may have had a son Joseph who married Rebecca Clements or he may have been a brother of Samuel?

Joseph Forgay Augusta County, VA after 1759 (Children of Jacob Clements listed)
Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish settlement in Virginia, extracted from the original court records of Augusta County, 1745-1800

So it looks like Samuel Forgey/ Forgay of Augusta, VA had a daughter Elizabeth born 1781? and a son named Joseph born quite a bit earlier? Or Jospeh was a brother of Samuel?

Still a lot to do on this. I am just going where it leads me. It reminds me of  when I learned to ride a bike. My father said "keep pedaling don't stop." If you stop you lose momentum and may fall off.

William and James land in Lincoln County, MS

William and Joseph's land is grouped together in the Corner of the township and James land is North  pink box.

Mired in Mississippi

Still searching Mississippi for Forgeys and trying to figure out where William of Pike County fits? I have mapped out all Forgey families in Mississippi so I can identify any who do no belong to any particular line. In searching records and trying to place individuals I've located two more men who no one has been able to link to an existing line. These men were James and Joseph who appeared on the 1830 Census for Choctaw County Mississippi. 

James is said to have been married to Elizabeth Brown who was said to have been born in Georgia according to the 1850 Census.  James was said to have been born in Kentucky in 1850. His son gave his birthplace as Mississippi. They line later spelled the name Forgay. 

It appears Joseph was likely a son of William of Pike County becasue he was married in nearby Lawrence County in 1818. He married a Winney Massey who probably was born in Georgia? It appears that William, of Pike, had two sons so both James and Joseph may have been his sons. The 1850 Census for James may have been in error? Someone posted that he may have been born in Georgia and his son said Mississippi?

According to the 1800 Census William had one son. 

In 1820 it appears there was another son who was between 0-16 yrs. old.

Nathaniel Forgay was a Miner in Plumas California 1860

The James Forgey family above later standardized the name with the spelling Forgay. So he may be from a completely different line, and from a different region of Ireland? Different regional dialects resulted in different spellings. James Forgay's descendants settled in Scott County, Arkansas and Plumas, California. According to the 1880 Census Nathaniel's father James was born in Mississippi (sounds like he may have made out alright with his mining he now has servants).

I've made some progress and hope that these Forgey/ Forgays are eventually placed in their proper line!

Finding Cousins at Facebook

If you've lost contact with members of your extended family a good way to reestablish contact is to find them at Facebook. It's a good way to get reacquainted and share family info.
Finding family with common names can be tricky. Not everyone posts a picture of themselves as a profile picture either, making the process of finding them more tricky even. The best way to narrow down the correct person would be to know their associates and check their list of friends for known other family members and associates. To find names of family and other associates check US Search . This site lists family members living and deceased who have lived with the person at some point in time. It also lists roommates in the related with section.
If you can not find the person you are looking for you may find someone they are related with according to US Search. You may be able to reestablish contact through that channel.
Since the younger generation uses Facebook most it might be easiest to look for someone in the Teen to Twenty something generation. I did this just yesterday, and found it useful several times before. I have about 30 something cousins, and I can remember all their names (most of the time LOL). I have trouble, however, with remembering their childrens names (my head is filled with so many names, and the hundreds of ancestors I've found LOL). The US Search related with feature has helped me find their names on several occasions. I seldom fail to find that generation at Facebook. When you find them sometimes their parents are also their friends, and you may even find their grandparents are their friends.

A tangle of relationships "William Forgey"

Abbeville, South Carolina 1800

William Forgey came up as a distant DNA match to a cousin (Nan Harvey). This man is a mystery I hadn't run across before. He was born, according to one tree, in 1753 in South Carolina and married Mary Gouge in 1778 in North Carolina. They have him dying in 1796. Much of this seems to be wrong. If he was the same man who lived in Pike County, Mississippi in 1820 he didn't die in 1796. Someone has a letter stating that William Forgey relocated to Pike County, Mississippi from Abbeville, South Carolina in the early 1800's.

Looking around the area I see several possible lines he may relate to. If he was in fact married in North Carolina he could be another son of Samuel Forgey.

Another possibility is he was an immigrant to South Carolina and not born there at all as suggested in one of the Census records? There was a William Forgey in Gloucester, New Jersey in 1795?

Elbert, Abeville and Laurens (where Samuels descedants lived)

He may also be related to John Forgey who was a Justice of the Peace in Elbert County, Georgia in the 1790's?  I believe this John also went by the name Fergus and Forgus and had a brother named James, and may also have had a brother William? These men fought in the Revolutionary War in South Carolina. It's interesting that John's name was spelled Forgey several times? I do now wonder if they are related to my family since they lived in Cumberland and Chester County, PA? Elbert, Georgia is not far from Abbeville, South Carolina. 

Here is what I've collected about James and John Fergus sometimes Forgey. According to this James has a brother who resided in South Carolina. He went to join his unnamed brother during the Revolutionary War.

He gives his parents as John and Martha of Chester County, PA ( James Forgey also lived in Chester County, PA).

Residences of John Fergus (Forgey). He later lived in Monroe County, Tennessee.

John Fergus was born in 1752 Chester County, PA. 

My genealogy Goals Status

2012 has been a very productive year with many breakthroughs! I continue to search for anything new on the internet regarding any line. I tend to go with the flow and grab any new tidbit that presents itself.
I do also have focused goals.Here are some I plan I working on this years.

1.  I found additional info on Eva Urmey's family in the War of 1812 Pension files. I need more information to establish her parents for certain.
2. I found William Owens' mother Francis' maiden name (Watkins). This will hopefully lead me to extend her line?
3. I will be continuing to research the Owens line also.
4. I recently found out my great grandfather William Forgey spent 2 years out west. I would like to find out where in the west he was?
5. I will try to make some progress on my Nicaraguan line.
6. As more War of 1812 files are uploaded I will be searching more of those files.
7. I hear deeds are soon to be posted at Familysearch.org. I will be searching those when available.

How I've been doing with last years goals:

Post Pearl Harbor Instructions for Californians

My mother was living in La Puente, California with her parents when the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred. She said that she was frightened and it was a very stressful time.
I found these instructions published in a Torrance, California newspaper after Pearl Harbor.

The December 10 false alarm resulted in anti-craft fire. 

Everyones dying....Don't Panic!

This was the mantra in 1918 "Don't Panic". Why? Because it might hurt the war effort. The media tried to play the flu epidemic down, but it was like hiding an elephant in the living room. There was so much sickness and dying going on in Jackson County, Indiana in the Fall of 1918 it's hard to keep up with it all. Don't know if there are any figures on the death totals in Jackson County, Indiana?

Pale Horse Pale Rider is a great semi autobiographical novel about the epidemic in the US (see book below).

They Farmed... what else?

I have had difficulty telling the story of my Jackson County, Indiana ancestors. They didn't fight off indians, the Civil War wasn't fought there. It wasn't the site of any major historic events. I've seen signs like nothing happened here in such and such year, which could be a sign found in Jackson County.
On a family level I know major life events occurred here. Such events were seldom recorded. Diaries, letters and so on are generally the places we find these events recorded. I have a transcript of one letter, that of Isis Browning-Forgey, with instructions she wanted carried out after her death. My family lived in a small town so these events also often made news and were recorded in the local Brownstown Banner Newspaper under such headings as "Freetown facts and fancies". Thankfully these newspapers have been digitized to the year 1923.
After reading the available papers I now have a much better picture of my ancestors lives. The Forgeys in Jackson County were primarily descendants of Hugh Forgey and Elizabeth Wray. A son of Hugh's brother, James Forgey, William was a blacksmith in Seymour.
I am still trying to amalgamate everything I've found into a unified story. My impression of the people of Jackson County is that of a practical, pragmatic people. They didn't have many material possessions. They often lived below there means. They worked hard and enjoyed visiting family and friends during their free time. Hunting, Fishing and Sunday Baseball games (Red Forgey was a pitcher) were also pastimes they enjoyed.
Contagious disease was a major cause of death in early times up to the early twenties. Without antibiotics entire families were wiped out by disease. There was a high child mortality rate as can be seen in the list of deaths for 1884.
The people of Jackson County, in general, were very receptive to new technology. They installed electrical wiring and phones as soon as they could afford to. Complaints were lodged when the phone company raised it's rates from 50 cents a year to $3 per year an increase of 600 percent. Cline Forgey signed the complaint. The switchboard for the phone company was is Rinda Denny's house. The job of operator was a 24/7 job. An alarm would go off when there was a call at night.
It seems the early Forgeys had strained family relationships? Maybe the belief in strict discipline and the never ending farm chores caused rifts. I noticed Hugh Forgey did not refer to Leander and William as beloved sons in his will? He referred to others in such a way. The newspapers seem to support a less than close relationship between father and sons. It appears that Hugh traveled to Arkansas and Oregon without the family. William Forgey disappeared at one point without notifying his family. He also spent time in Iowa as a teenager. It was implied that he was difficult to handle, and needed to apply himself more to his studies?
It was interesting to find some health history too. It surprised me to find out that my great-grandfather was diagnosed with heart trouble in 1900. It's hard to say whether that was an accurate diagnosis. His son, my grandfather, also had heart trouble. He had to have a pacemaker. My Great-Grandmother Isis and her daughter Edna had Diphtheria in 1900. It was said they had it again?
There was talk about my great-grandfather William (Spud) Forgey opening a combination furniture and undertaking establishment. I don't think this ever happened? He was going to go into business with a brother-in-law.

My grandfather shows up in the paper as Dick Forgey in 1923 (His name was actually Charles Lynn Forgey). He was apparently hiding his identity so my grandmother wouldn't find him. I had no idea he had returned to Indiana in 1923 to visit his family. He also went to Detroit to visit brother George (Claude). I don't know how the visit went but he returned to California and in 1925 his wife and daughter joined him. Sounds like he was separated from his wife, my Grandmother, and his daughter, my mother, from 1923 to 1925. There isn't any mention of my grandfather's service in the Marines in the Brownstown Banner. I think my Great-Grandfather was quite angry with my Grandfather. As I understand there were no pictures of my grandfather in the family house. Perhaps my grandfather fell in with a bad element. As early as 1884 there were complaints about drunken teenagers (see article right).
My Great-Great Uncle Leander Forgey seemed to be the most stable of the early generation. He had a large family of 11 children. Being such a large family they encountered every conceivable problem which a family could face at that time. They had numerous illnesses such as TB and Spinal Meningitis. One of their daughters died at age 3. A son died at age 28 of TB. He, John Forgey, was deaf from the age of 9 and attended deaf school in Indianapolis. He learned the printing trade there. He later went west to pursue a career as a Cowboy and contracted TB.
Many of the Forgeys ran small businesses in southern Indiana. William "Red" Forgey (Leander's son) was a very successful businessman. He ran a grocery and Barber Shop in Freetown for 62 years. His brother Clyde ran a Grocery store in Surprise. Their cousin (my Great-Uncle C. C. Forgey) owned a Cream Station. Some of his sons also owned the Forgey Food Liner from 1955 to 1967.
Cline Forgey, another of Leander's sons, was a school teacher and sold real estate and insurance on the side. Sounds like his Aunt Sarah Ellen Forgey/George also studied to be a school teacher in the early 1870's. I don't know whether she ever taught school?
I found out that my Great-Grandfather William Wray Forgey spent two years in the far west, but no other details were given. I would like to know exactly where he went?

I am happy that The Banner waved gloriously over the Forgey "The Forgey Mansion" LOL,  I filled in many gaps in my knowledge of the family.

Civil War Pension CD

I received the Civil War Pension file on CD from the National Archives a little more than a week ago. In the past it took months to get the file after they received your order. It now can take as little as 3 weeks. I got mine about 2 1/2 later weeks after ordering. I was shocked to find out how much the price has increased since I last ordered a Pension file. It now costs $80 dollars for a copy of the full file. So I ordered 8 pages at a cost of $30. Ordering is much easier than in the past. The last Pension I ordered in early 2000 I had to make out a form and snail mail it to them. Online ordering now speeds up the process.

I was thrilled with the contents of the file I received for James H. Owens. It confirmed my relationship to him. It confirmed that he was the same man who appeared on the 1900 Census in Kansas. It resolved conflicting information. Both James and his wife Christina claimed to be widowed while both were still living. They evidently were falsifying some of their information for their own reasons.
So the missing James H. Owens has now officially be found!