I am researching to create 3 new programs on the Underground Railroad, the History of Photography, and a genealogy program for young children ages 3 – 10.) These will be ready late this year / early next year.
I am also adding information to 2 of my existing programs:
“Slavery and the ‘Colored Troops’ that fought for the Union” to find more of the family background for my “Honoring Laurence Ousley of the Beloit Public Library, Wisconsin” program. I will rename it to “Slavery, Civil War Service, and Success – the Beloit Wisconsin Ousley Family.”
Digital Research Library of Illinois History Journal– huge database of indexed learned articles on every aspect of Illinois, Lincoln, and United States history. (I am finding lots of information.) (also under BLOG tab Genealogy Links and Helps > States > Illinois.)
And “ready-cut house kits/ Sears Craftsman, etc.” for my “How to find the Genealogy of a House, and those that lived in It”. I will be presenting this program at Harvard Community Library, Illinois tonight at 6 p.m. and also on Zoom/In Person Hybrid for town and Country Public Library in Elburn, Illinois on June 17 at 7 p.m. I will add the Zoom link on my 2024 Programs tab and on my Facebook Page. to My SLGC Events when I get it.
Zoom and/or In-PersonPresentations by Vicki Ruthe Hahn:
MARCH:
Using genealogy techniques of house architectural clues, local history, legal documents, maps, and stories, to learn more about a building and all of its occupants
Thursday, Free in-person stand-alone presentation for Beloit Public Library – Part 1 of a series. Effectively find the most that you can about your family history with hands-on exercises, & examples. Be successful using basic & advanced genealogy research methods. Briefly learn how to: search archives & on-line, record evidence, organize your genealogy, use timelines & “FAN” clubs, analyze records, & find missing clues based on what you know.
APRIL:
Hybrid Zoom/In-Person. Thursday, Free Zoom presentation (click on the Event Link –https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85946254390 ) for TMG – Tinley Moraine Genealogists (or attend at Tinley Park Public Library, 7851 Timber DR, Tinley Park, IL.) Hands on exercises & suggestions on how to reflect your own life through words, photos, & mapping. Bring a photo or picture from your past that you want to write about. Learn how to see more about your ancestors’ lives by recording stories you wish they had left.
Reporter Taylor Castro interviewed me on April 6, 2024 for her Eye Witness News segment on Fox TV 39 WQRF in Rockford Illinois. Her topic was “the challenges that ethnic groups face when looking for information about their ancestral origins.” Taylor also wanted information about using genealogy for a segment on Black History Month. I will add a second link here when she presents the news segment later this month, and sends it to me.
Taylor and I had a lot of fun talking about genealogy and those specific topics – really we shared a lot of laughs and comradery even though I look very serious in the film snips she presented. Taylor interviewed me for about an hour and 15 minutes. Within an hour after that, she had crafted the information into a very succinct, intelligent, and thorough news segment of 2 1/2 minutes. (And changed clothes to do the reporting presentation!) I am very impressed with her journalistic skills.
You will be too. Here is the video link to our news segment on genealogy:
There is now a link to the WBCGS Winnebago and Boone Counties Genealogical Society Zoom video of my Contemporary Fashion Through The Decades program on Feb. 3, 2024. It is now posted to their Member Access section of their website. Past programs are only available for viewing to members. Annual membership is only $15 and well worth supporting the great programing and genealogy support/projects that WBCGS does:
I’m back from a great 8-day September trip to Salt Lake City Utah, and area. The incentive was to to visit relatives 2 hours from Salt Lake City, Utah so I could interview Aunt Mary about Family History, and to make copies of her photographs. There was no way that I was getting that close without going a few days (in the mornings, and evenings) to research genealogy at the LDS Latter Day Saints (Mormon) FHC Family History Center (Library) (for the first time). And in the afternoons, we did site-seeing – to hear the area history, to float in the Great SALT Lake, and to hear the memorable Mormon Tabernacle organ, Choir, and Orchestra.)
BTW – they do not like to be called “Mormons”, but LDS. It was also an interesting opportunity to immerse in the LDS culture to learn more about it (observing and asking questions as an cultural anthropologist.) Utah is about 60% LDS, and even the non-LDS folks are influenced – including the street naming system even in small towns, etc. Polygamy is un-lawful and officially frowned upon by the LDS Church, but it is present.
We found members of the Latter Day Saints to be very good people, but with theological beliefs that are not for me.
Many of them are dedicated genealogists, as it is part of their faith. They want to find their ancestors so that they can be dedicated in their Temple (by a living person in proxy) so that they can be with their family in Heaven.
Salt Lake (home of the “most successful Winter Olympics 2003 “) makes genealogy easy. It is a mecca for worldwide visitors who want to do genealogy research. None of the FHC Family History Center volunteers, or anyone else, put any religious pressure on anyone. But they know that you are happy to be there to do genealogy research. The streets are very safe, even at night.
One-way Senior tickets are $1.25 for the Inter-city train TRAX that goes from the airport (6 miles away) through downtown and ending in the suburbs to the South. There are also good City buses. We got a nice Holiday Inn Express motel room (including a full hot breakfast) two blocks from the Temple Square (and TRAX). We walked from the hotel to the recently re-modeled Family History Center. There were many (higher priced) restaurants nearby for supper. But every lunch we ate in the FHC Library Dining Center from the super inexpensive vending meal/snack machines or from left-overs that we could keep in the community refrigerator!
Even my husband “did” genealogy for the first time because the Library volunteers make it so easy. We got 11″ x 14″ pie-chart genealogies printed out from the (crowd-sourced) FamilySearch.org family histories. From the research that I have done, I noticed some wrong names, etc. But it is a great way to see blanks in the family tree. I will use it as a guide to search person by person and correct the wrong names on the shared Wiki Tree. Ancestry.com, and other genealogy software/databases also have family tree charts that you can fill in / print out. The color-coding is helpful in organizing the four branches of your family. (Note that Ancestry.com was founded in Utah by LDS members, but it is not connected to them like FamilySearch.org.)
The best part of the Family History Center (besides the extensive collection and the opportunity to donate your family history research to the Library) was the knowledgeable volunteers who helped me with my family history research. Experts worked with me – one on Wales, one on France, and one on how to search on FamilySearch.org – for a total six hours over 3 days!
Scanning with a Camera Brace
I had decided that I would no longer take shaky skewed photographs of book pages and maps for genealogy. I have not had luck with portable scanners working, so I use my cellphone. I bought a cell-phone brace (below) from Amazon.com that arrived just in time. It helped a lot.
Photograph taken with a hand-held cell phonePhoto taken on a table in reduced light with a camera bracePhoto taken on a table in reduced light with a camera brace – ENHANCED WITH MY HERITAGE.COM
(Note – I used the brace holding the cell-phone facing down – like the 4th little picture.): ” Phone Stand for Recording, Phone Tripod Adjustable and Solid, Overhead Phone Mount, Fixable Gooseneck Phone Holder for Video Recording, Online Teaching, Cookie Decorating, Live Streaming – MAKKIWAI brand. 4.6 stars. $24. 1.63 pounds.
The brace folded into the box that it came in, and – yes I had to explain what it was when the TSA stopped my suitcase. Next time I will leave it out of the box in the TSA bin next to my tablet, laptop, and cell phone.
They all fit into the special wheeled under-the-seat suitcase that I take on research trips. I take this suitcase with me into (research) libraries.
I bought a High Sierra suitcase several years ago (21″ x 14″ x 9″) similar to this one which has backpack straps, while mine has a sleeve that slides over my carry-on luggage handle. Note- my carry-on has 360 degree wheels, and I only have to have these 2 suitcases (in the summer) to avoid baggage claiming checked luggage.
Once we got home, I bought some rapid-chargers (up to 50% in 30 minutes):
and a back-up portable charger
– to prevent repeating the almost disaster of the rental car not working on my slow charger, not having time to print out our Boarding Passes, running late through 3 time zones driving through the 11% incline mountains to return a rental car far from the Las Vegas Airport, and having only 14% left on my phone when we just made it from the transit bus to board the plane. This will also be useful when the electric power goes out.
Now home, I have been working on transferring my photos from research into usable documents, edited photographs, and sources for my family history. And I realized that I have a lot from many previous research trips. My free Google Photos is almost full, so that also motivates me to do the research trip follow-up work that we all should be doing. Better to have those on my computer hard-drive where I can use them in my Family Trees. Here are some methods that I use to do that.
InfanView KADMOS OCR
I took photos of several signs while we were sight-seeing, as well as books and maps. I was just reminded the other day that InfanView has an OCR function that I have used before to transcribe from the print in a JPEG or a PDF into an editable, readable Word document. You have the option to transcribe from 1) Machine print, 2) Hand print, 3)Fraktur, or 4) Numbers.
Here is the KADMOS OCR transcription that InfanView did of one Machine Print sign. Each yellow high-lighted area has to be clicked on separately. I edited the OCR version on the right while looking at the original on the left, then copied each part into Word.
Here is a close-up of the high rate of accuracy result:
““In late 1853, American explorer John C. Fremont passe~~nrough what is now the northern district of the park while looking for a potenl:ial railroad route to the ~5i6c Ocean. ‘nie expedition lost its way ~~ ~5~ were forced to eat their horses. LateY, t~ .;: ~ found relief at a Latter-day Saint settlen~ent to the west. Jewish American artist and daguerreotypist, Solomon Nunes Carvalho, documented the journey. He created this image of formations in Cath~ V~ It may be the first image recorded of the fu~ park.”
InfanView is free and can also be used to edit photos, including adding a white border with the description added to keep it visible on the photo. It is rather a clunky app to download, but has been useful for many genealogists. InfanView requires downloads of 32-bit, 64-bit, and Plug-Ins to work. Here is the download link: https://www.irfanview.com/main_download_engl.htm
There is a new Google Lens app for Text OCR transcribing that shows up on my Cellphone camera when photographing text. I am still learning how to use it.
Stitching Photos into a Panorama
One of our Utah sight-seeing trips was to Capital Reef National Park to see the hard-to-spot Petroglyphs etched onto the cliff walls by pre-historic Native Americans. Sometimes we don’t get documents or vital records to prove our heritage. For those of you who are lucky enough to have (DNA or other) proof of long-ago pre-literate ancestors, you might get only proof by “pictures” or archeological findings.
I had taken 13 photographs to catch all of the Petroglyphs. Then I used Image Composite Editor to stitch together the photos into panoramic photos. This free software app was apparently discontinued by Microsoft, but can still be downloaded from here: https://image-composite-editor.software.informer.com/2.0/
Or other free “stitching” apps are available.
Note to self – be sure to finish the research trip by following through with interpreting the facts, photos, and sources into connections documented in my family history. And note where and when I found each!!
There are a multitude of local FHC Family History Centers throughout the world near you. These are in the local LDS churches (Wards) and have limited hours when you can get genealogy assistance from local volunteers. They also have free on-site access to subscription genealogy databases, large scanners, etc. There is one 5 miles from my small town home. There are 30 Family Search Centers or Affiliates within 50 miles of me. Here is the link for you to find locations near you. https://locations.familysearch.org/en/search
You can watch my pre-recorded Stateline Genealogy Club LLC program “How Do I Do Genealogy? Family History for Beginners, and Detective Techniques for Experienced Genealogists, Part 1” through October 31, 2023 on-line on the North Suburban Library District NSLD You Tube Channel or the “northsuburbanlibrary.org” website.
Saturday, June 3, 2023 @ 1 p.m. “Stateline Travelers – Chicago Gangsters Connections to Northern Illinois and Wisconsin” – Hybrid/Zoom Presentation for Tinley Moraine Genealogists, Tinley Park, Illinois. Learn more about the Italian American immigrants, the organization of the Mafia, overcoming the difficult search for genealogy of its members, the influences it had on local history, and connections to people in area communities. Presented by Vicki Ruthe Hahn
Tinley Moraine Genealogists (TMG) is a local genealogy society in the southwest suburbs of Chicago, based in the Village of Tinley Park. Their regular meetings are held at the Tinley Park Public Library; 7851 Timber Drive, Tinley Park, IL.
Other Travelers – Partof a continuing series. by Vicki Ruthe Hahn 2024Mar24
My 6 times Great Grandfather Robert Campbell SR. (and his family) were American Revolutionary Patriots, and lived a Historic Tragedy.
Monsignor Glenn Nelson in authentic replica American Revolutionary War Pennsylvania militia uniform, with Vicki Ruthe Hahn 2023Jul03
This is my new friend, Monsignor Glenn Nelson, who just got his new authentic replica American Revolutionary War Pennsylvania militia uniform the day before we meet at the McHenry County Illinois Genealogical Society’s Annual Conference 03 July 2023 at McHenry County Community College, Illinois. I told him the story of what happened to my Robert Campbell SR.’s family. He agreed to channel Robert Campbell SR. so that I could stand beside “my ancestor” for a modern day photograph of what my 6X Grandpa would have looked like while being a patriot fighter in Pennsylvania.
Robert Campbell SR.’s tombstone in Pleasant Grove Presbyterian Cemetery, Ligonier, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania summarizes his family’s tragic experiences:
“In memory of Robert Campbell, who died at an advanced age. The deceased was one of the early settlers of this valley and with them suffered much from Indian cruelty. In the year 1775 his wife and infant daughter were barbarously murdered, his house burned, and the rest of his children, five in number taken captives, one of whom never returned. A kind providence restored the rest to their friends after some years, who lived to be useful citizens and followers of the Redeemer.”
Below is a partial example of my Research Log on this family:
Let’s explore some of the historical background that led to the Campbell family tragedies. Many Native American tribes had associated with, and fought with, either side in the previous French Indian War. ://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_and_Indian_War – “The British colonists were supported at various times by the Iroquois, Catawba, and Cherokee tribes, and the French colonists were supported by Wabanaki Confederacy member tribes Abenaki and Mi’kmaq, and the Algonquin, Lenape, Ojibwa, Ottawa, Shawnee, and Wyandot (Huron) tribes.[9“ They fought to try and keep the fur trade and the land.
TO DO – did Robert Campbell SR. fight in the French and Indian War? He would have been about age 19 when it started. Some sources say that he was born in Ireland but most say in York, Pennsylvania – coming to Donegal Township /now Cook Township, Westmoreland County, PA “Before the Revolutionary War.” (Property records cited in the study “Three Campbell Families” show it was about 1762.)
TO DO – verify which birth location and when/if Robert immigrated from Ireland.
“The French and Indian War resulted from ongoing frontier tensions in North America as both French and British imperial officials and colonists sought to extend each country’s sphere of influence in frontier regions. In North America, the war pitted France, French colonists, and their Native allies against Great Britain, the Anglo-American colonists, and the Iroquois Confederacy, which controlled most of upstate New York and parts of northern Pennsylvania. In 1753, prior to the outbreak of hostilities, Great Britain controlled the 13 colonies up to the Appalachian Mountains, but beyond lay New France, a very large, sparsely settled colony that stretched from Louisiana through the Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes to Canada.“
“British colonial forces, led by Lieutenant Colonel George Washington, attempted to expel the French in 1754.”
Fort Ligonier was built near the Campbell’s farm. Per the Fort Ligonier website and Wikipedia – “the Post of Loyalhanna” (soon renamed Fort Ligonier) was built overlooking the Loyalhanna Creek, along with a 300 mile military road across Pennsylvania Appalachian Mountains, in September 1758. It was the last of several fort/supply depots/staging areas that General John Forbes built for the strategy of “protected advance”. This allowed him to move his British-American troop of 5,000 to attack the French Fort Duquesne (which became Pittsburgh) 50 miles away. George Washington arrived at Fort Ligonier by late October 1758. Did Robert Campbell SR know George Washington?
Many other (eventual) American Colonist patriots got their military training in the 7 Years War, including seeing techniques that Native Americans used in fighting against the rigid British army formations. Those ambush and hit-and-run from cover fighting methods were used by American Colonists in the War for Independence.
Spain joined in supporting France in the 7 Years War, and battles were fought in Europe, the Caribbean, as well as in Canada, and what would become the United States. (See Spanish Territory west of the Colonies in the map above.)
“In the resulting Treaty of Paris (1763), Great Britain secured significant territorial gains in North America, including all French territory east of the Mississippi river, as well as Spanish Florida, although the treaty returned Cuba to Spain.”
“Unfortunately for the British, the fruits of victory brought seeds of trouble with Great Britain’s American colonies. The war had been enormously expensive, and the British government’s attempts to impose taxes on colonists to help cover these expenses resulted in increasing colonial resentment of British attempts to expand imperial authority in the colonies. British attempts to limit western expansion by colonists and inadvertent provocation of a major Indian war further angered the British subjects living in the American colonies. These disputes ultimately spurred colonial rebellion, which eventually developed into a full-scale war for independence.” Another issue was “taxation without representation.”
Daniel Boone illustrates an example of the restriction of western expansion by colonial pioneers. The British had legally blocked colonialist settlement West of the Appalachian Mountain Range after the French Indian War in 1763 so the tribes thought that keeping the British in charge would rid them of the Colonist Settlers, at least in that area. They thought it was their best bet for the land being protected for them. Daniel Boone, and others, challenged that theory by illegally settling in Kentucky before the Revolutionary War, (later serving as a Captain in it’s militia in the American Revolution) .
Daniel Boone depicted in an 1820 portrait by Chester Harding, (1792 – 1866) – the only known portrait of him made during his lifetime[1], Credit: Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery
Read a Britannica article on Daniel Boone here. Daniel Boone, born 1734, Berks County,Pennsylvania -1820, had “helped blaze a trail through Cumberland Gap, a notch in the Appalachian Mountains near the juncture of Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky.” First going through the Cumberland Gap on a hunt in the fall of 1767. ”In 1773 Boone undertook to lead his own and several other families to Kentucky (which was then beyond the western borders of the Thirteen Colonies) , but the group was attacked by Cherokee Indians just beyond the last settlement. Two of the party, including Boone’s son James, were captured, tortured, and murdered, whereupon the survivors turned back.”
“In March 1775 Boone and 28 companions were employed by Richard Henderson’s Transylvania Company to blaze a trail through Cumberland Gap. … Despite Indian attacks, the party built the Wilderness Road, which ran from eastern Virginia into the interior of Kentucky and beyond and became the main route to the region then known as the West. It helped make possible the immediate opening of the first settlements in Kentucky: Boonesborough, … In August 1775 Boone brought his wife Rebecca and their daughter to Boonesborough. “
“Boone became a captain in the county’s militia during the American Revolution and a leader in defending Boonesborough against the Indians.”
Then after the American Revolutionary War, Daniel Boone broke the legal limitations again – “… in 1799, he and members of his family (including son Nathan Boone) followed another son, Daniel Morgan Boone, to Missouri, in Louisiana Territory (then belonging to Spain), where he continued to hunt and trap.” They settled there, and Boone died in 1820. west of St. Louis, MO.
I previously found mention of one of my ancestors knowing Daniel Boone, but I don’t remember if it was the Campbell’s. I do have ancestors in Montgomery and Chester Counties in eastern PA next to Boone’s place of birth – Berk County, PA (A on map below). Boone would have been the contemporary of Robert Campbell, SR. who had lived 2 counties away in York County (B on map) then moving to Cook Township, Westmoreland County (C on map) in western PA before the War for Independence.
Pennsylvania map showing proximity from West/left to East/right between Pittsburgh, PA to C= Cook Township, Westmoreland County, PA to B=York County, PA to A = Reading, Berks County, PA to Philadelphia, PA
Robert Campbell SR., 1735 – 1810, served as a Third Lieutenant (Pennsylvania, U.S., Revolutionary War Battalions and Militia Index, 1775-1783, vol. 1 pg 229) in Captain James Wright’s Company from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania in the Continental Army of the American Revolution. He served from 1775 – 1783; from just before his family’s tragedy until the end of the War for Independence.
More of the Campbell Family story, and details about how this period of history affected people in the local area, are in the book by C. Hale Sipe “Fort Ligonier and its times : a history of the first English fort west of the Allegheny Mountains, and an account of many thrilling, tragic, romantic, important but little known colonial and revolutionary events in the region where the winning of the West began : based primarily on the Pennsylvania archives and colonial records.” Harrisburg, Pa.: Telegraph Press, 1932, c1933. Fort Ligonier was in Donegal County (later Cook County), PA.
This book states the history of Mansville Village (in the middle West of Cook Township), Westmoreland County, PA : “The first
Town.” “ Robert Campbell SR. would have lots of family to join when he settled in that part of Pennsylvania.
From “Three Campbell families in Leggier Valley, Pennsylvania” – Robert SR., and his brothers William and Cornelius came from Straban Township. York County, to Westmoreland County, PA. I have not found “proof” except Ancestry.com Family Trees to indicate that they were born or came from Ireland. (It was probably a previous generation that came from Ireland?) Robert SR arrived in Westmoreland County before 1771, according to tax and property records. Robert’s brother William Campbell owned the farm next to him. It also shows that three of Robert Campbell SR.’s children (including my direct ancestor 5th Gt Grandfather William) married Galbreath family siblings from the same location. And later generations married other Campbell relatives. Lots of my relatives will be in these documents, so TO DO – I will download the resource books/papers as PDFs or JPEGs so that I can continually refer back to them for many surnames, even after my genealogy database subscriptions end.
The “Fort Ligonier and its Times” book, Chapter “History of Fort Ligonier; Pennsylvania in the Revolution” speaks about Robert Campbell Sr’s son Robert “Elder” Campbell JR. (My William’s older brother.) There is some variation in the records about the year of the attack on the Campbell household. I have seen the date of the attack as July, 1775 – i.e. on the headstone engraving.
One of these 3 types of traditionally Native American weapons – the tomahawk, stone tomahawk, or war club would have been used to kill Hannah Jane Montgomery Campbell. Colonial soldiers later took up these weapons when they fought for American freedom. One reason was because they were distinctively American weapons that British troops did not have, making it a powerful symbol of the soldiers desire to reject dependence on British arms (also bullets and guns would be in short supply.) Another reason was effectiveness. Having faced tomahawks before and seeing how efficient they were, colonials were probably eager to use them upon the British.
Left to Right: tomahawk, stone tomahawk, war club
One source has conflicting information about the attack on the Campbell’s – the Fort Ligonier book notes on page 369 that the book “History of Westmoreland County” by Albert states that “Robert Campbell SR was killed by the ‘Indians'”, but on another page that he “was away from home”. (See below)
Fort Ligonier book, Page 368 (speaking of his son Robert):
Fort Ligonier book, Page 369
There is plenty of evidence that Robert SR did not die until old age, in 1810.
There were other Robert Campbell’s in PA at that time. I may have to do a comparison chart to see which are the wrong Robert’s records. One was a Capt. Robert Campbell in the Lancaster County Militia under Col. Thomas Porter in 1776 = wrong County, commander, and rank. (U.S., Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 for Robert Campbell, Pennsylvania, 10th Regiment (Folder 37) – Various Organizations (Folder 93). One Robert played the fife as a child. One Robert later had a Will that was signed “Robert X His Mark Campbell”. This means that this Robert did not know how to read or write. We know that my Robert Campbell did from his beautifully signed official Lieutenant signature on a Service Muster for Westmoreland and PA military record:
TO DO – Look up what the military designation of “D.M.M. G” (above) means.
TO DO – look up the records for the Pleasant Grove Presbyterian Church and documents at the Cook County, PA historical/genealogy societies.
Hint – look at the historical record for dates:” The American Revolutionary War, also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the military conflict of the American Revolution. WikipediaDates: Apr 19, 1775 – Sep 3, 1783.“
The PA books mention that there were more intensive “Indian troubles” towards the end of the War – in 1777 and 1778. This particular part of Pennsylvania had trouble because it was on the main path thru the Appalachian Mountains for many Native American tribes. A Seneca Tribe attacked the Campbell’s during the Revolutionary War.
TO DO – see which Native American tribes sided with Colonists and which sided with the British during the Revolutionary War.
The various sources of the attack on the Campbell farm state that it was July 1775/76/77. The War of Independence started April 1775. At the time of the attack, Robert SR. was probably away from home, serving nearby in the Pennsylvania Colonist militia. Most of those Colonialists were farmers and had to get home intermittently to keep the crops growing and the livestock cared for.
TO DO – find which military actions that Robert SR.’s unit was involved in, especially April – July 1775, and 1776/77.
There is documentation that Robert Sr’s son Robert Campbell “Elder” JR. 1758-1857 was also serving as a Private in the PA militia – (U.S., Revolutionary War Pensions, 1801-1815, 1818-1872 for “Robert Campbell 2” 1800 and commencing July 1818. Treasury Department pension payment records for payments made semiannually from 1801-1815 and 1818-1871.) TO DO – Review and download copies of all of the 2 Robert Campbell’s and other Campbell relative’s military records from Fold3 before my subscription ends!)
Robert JR. must have been on leave to help his younger brothers weed the fields of their farm or put in late crops delayed by the outbreak of War, (as I don’t know what would have been harvested in July.) If the year of the attack was 1775, he would have been 17. If it was 1777, he would have been age 19. Hint – look at the law and practices of that time period and see at what age a man could sign up to serve in the Pennsylvania Revolutionary War militia. How old would Robert JR. have to have been?
The Revolutionary War veteran record for Robert “Elder” Campbell JR. – shows that he served from 1775 – 1782 in the army as a “Westmoreland County Ranger. So Robert JR. signed up when he was age 17 – it had to be before the July attack. One source says that Robert JR. was held by Indians from 1777 – 1782, so that indicates that the attack was in 1777. Robert “Elder” JR was age 17/19? at capture and escaped in 1782 at age 24 and returned home. Another source says that he was held captive for “6 years” (so 1776 -1782.) His militia service ended in 1782 – one year before the end of the War. He might have needed time to recuperate from his capture/escape.
Robert JR probably was considered to still be in service while captured. He received a land warrant of 300 acres in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania in 1785 (as a veteran?). He became very pious and was called “Elder” because of his religious position in the Presbyterian Church.
The mother and wife was Hannah Jane Montgomery Campbell 1740 – July 1775/76/77. The un-named infant was a daughter – who birth and death dates depend on which year the attack happened. The Campbell baby would have been so young as to be killed with her mother falling on her. Also younger sister Sarah’s 1770 – 1775/76/77 date of death would depend on when she was killed because she could not stay on the horse. Was she age 4/5 – age 7?
TO DO – see if there is any Church or Family Bible records on their births/deaths.
The other 2 girls: Polly 1768-1840 would have been age 7 – 9, and Isabell(a) “Ibly” 1770 – 1861 would have been age 5 – 7 (at capture). They were released after 4 years – about July 1779 – 1781? at ages 11 – 13 and 9 – 11. (Polly never married.) Did you catch that Sarah and Isabell(a) have the same 1770 birth year?
Brother Thomas 1762 -? was age 15 – 17 at capture and was never heard from again. It seems from the family story that I will find the rest of his life in England “adopted” by a British officer.
Brother William Campbell 1763-1850 captured at age 12 – 14, was exchanged at age 20, in about September 1783 at the close of the Revolutionary War. William is my 5 times Great Grandfather through my Paternal Grandmother maternal lineage.)
TO DO: go thru the multitude of conflicting information to weigh and verify which are the most accurate dates/ages.
Father Robert Campbell SR. seems not to have married again. Robert JR. “Elder” Campbell lived with his wife and children, with father Robert SR. in the same farm and house as where their family tragedy happened.
There are a lot of records and histories about this family and their tragic role in the Pennsylvania of their times. Hint – download any records/documents as JPEGs, TIF, PNG, PDF or Word document onto your computer and back it up. HTML’s links do not save well AND the links can disappear.
I have a lot of analysis to do before I can get all of their information documented and organized correctly. Sometimes having more information (especially with contradictions) can make that harder. My over-all research question has become -“Which year was the Campbell Family attacked?” I am leaning toward 1775, as more sources give that year. The headstone for Robert Campbell SR. would have approved by his children, who lived the tragedy.
I did not want to wait until I had complete information to share this family history with you. The Campbell Family story was just too important to tell. I will honor their memory by continuing to research the best conclusions for their family tree and lives. AND – of course, I want to find even more information about their interesting lives.
You might want to read more about one later descendant of this family in my article on a son of William Campbell 1763-1850: Thomas Campbell 1785-1858 (my 4th Great Grandfather). Thomas was a patriotic hero in the similarly stressful time of pre-Civil War Abolitionism – “Other Travelers Part 9 – The Underground Railroad and Me; My Ancestor Thomas Campbell was an Abolitionist!” – https://wordpress.com/post/statelinegenealogyclub.wordpress.com/167807
Friday, April 21, 2023 – 10 – 11 a.m. – Interview on UW-Stevens Point at Wausau Station, NPR Wisconsin Public Radio’s “Route 51” talk show program on “How to Find the Genealogy of a House and those that Lived There”, as well as genealogical research in general.
(Information, photo, and download below – used with permission of WPR:)
We go live on air with host, Shereen Siewert at 10:06 a.m., and the show lasts until 11. They do take calls during “Route 51″ at the number below, if you want to participate.
“Route 51” is a regional talk show hosted by Shereen Siewert focusing on issues important to the north-central Wisconsin area, as well as featuring regional music, culture, and arts. Topics include proposed legislation, sustainability, health care, economics, agriculture, and the justice system.
“Route 51” can be heard Fridays at 10 a.m. on 930 WLBL-AM Auburndale/Stevens Point, 91.9 WLBL-FM and 101.3 W267BB-FM Wausau, 99.1 W256CZ-FM Stevens Point, 100.9 W265DC-FM Marshfield, 90.3 WHBM-FM Park Falls, 89.9 WHSF-FM Rhinelander/Eagle River, and 89.1 WHAA-FM Adams/Wisconsin Rapids. It is also repeated Fridays at 7 p.m. on 90.9 WHRM-FM Wausau.
“Every house has a story to tell, and tracing the history of your home can feel like making your way through an overgrown garden maze. Finding out when your home was built, who lived within its walls and what changes were made through the years can be a challenging, but fascinating journey.
Shereen Siewert welcomes Vicki Ruthe Hahn, a retired librarian and genealogy consultant with a background in anthropology, history and research, for a discussion on how to research the history of your home and uncover its hidden mysteries.”
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