James Corbin: 52 Ancestors Prompt "Soldier"

James Corbin: 1702-1759

A Soldier’s Brutal Death

            James Corbin is my 6^th great-grandfather, the father of my 5^th great-grandmother Sarah Corbin. She married Nathaniel Mills, who were the parents of one of the Dane family wives. James was born February 24, 1702 in Woodstock, Connecticutt to parents James Corbin and Hannah Eastman Corbin. He came from a large family and had five brothers and three sisters.

On June 19, 1728, he married Susannah Bacon. He was 26 years old, and she was two years older. The couple had a daughter, Abigail, who was born in 1729, and another daughter Susannah who was born in 1731. By that time, the couple no longer seemed to be living in Woodstock; the baptism records show the minister baptized the girls in “Kickamochoag” which seems to be a corruption of the Native American name for the river Coginchaug, near the town of Durham.

            By 1732, the family had moved to Massachusetts, settling in the town of Dudley in Worcester County.  There are no records explaining the move, or indicating James’ profession. Presumably he was a farmer. The couple went on to have eight more children; my fifth great-grandmother was the fifth child, born in 1739.  

            At some point, James became a soldier for the British in the French and Indian War. The Massachusetts colony raised a large number of troops for the effort. The war used both militia men, who were unpaid volunteers, and provincial troops, who were paid by the colonial government for a specific amount of service time, usually a single campaign season. As Wikipedia notes, “Offering money induced propertyless men to enlist.” The Wikipedia article also noted that while other colonies tended to send only the very young, unmarried men. the Massachusetts troops came from a broader swathe of the population.

            The war officially began in 1756. James was not the typical enlistee, since he had land, ten children, and was far from young—he was well into his fifties. He must have been desperate for the colonial government salary, which may have included an enlistment bonus.

            I have found no records regarding his service in the war—the battles he participated in, his date of enlistment, his commanding officer, etc. However, in 1758 or 1759, he returned to his home in Dudley. According to Rev. Harvey M Lawson, author of History and Genealogy of the Descendants of Clement Corbin of Muddy River (Brooklin) Mass. And Woodstock Conn.,

“He came home, claiming that his term of service was up, stoutly resisted arrest, was tied to his horse and taken to Springfield, Mass., where he died from rough handling in 1758.  His widow and son James were appointed administrators on his estate, appraised at £497 14s. 6d.”

            From other sources I have read, the soldiers were very aware of the length of their term of service. Warfare in those days was difficult and dangerous. Food was scarce, shelter limited, and illness was rampant. Men looked forward to the end of their service and would, like poor James, be eager to return home. I suspect the British treatment of James—basically treating him as a deserter—was meant to set an example to other soldiers that it was still up to the British officers to determine when your service was complete—you couldn’t just head home when you knew your time was up.

British military discipline was extremely brutal. One colonial officer’s account of his service describes his horror at witnessing a flogging—two men given 500 lashes apiece. While the men remained alive at the end of the flogging, the officer believed they would soon die as the skin on their backs hung in strips and infection would have set in.

I can only imagine James’ family’s horror when the British arrested him. They must have been terrified as he was tied to his horse and led away. Learning that he had died at his jailors’ hands would have been devastating. I suspect the family was forced to retrieve the body. I wonder what that benign phrase “rough handling” actually comprised. Was James flogged with a whip, or was he beaten with fists or weapons? His body was buried at the Dudley Cemetery. He shares a headstone with his wife Susannah, who lived until 1794 when she was 94 years old.

            I am surprised that his estate was valued at 497 pounds—that would indicate he wasn’t destitute. Perhaps that value was mostly in land and buildings, and that money for daily existence was lacking, motivating his enlistment.

            At the time of his death, my 5^th great-grandmother was 19 years old. His other children ranged in age from five to thirty. His two oldest sons, James, age 24, and Ephraim, age 20, seem to have taken over the farm and the support of the family.

            James Corbin’s tragic death shows that 18^th century soldiers faced hazards and perils far beyond the obvious risks of injury and death in battle.  

Source: History and Genealogy of the Desecendants of Clement Corbin of Muddy River (Brooklin), Mass. and Woodstock, Conn Compiled by Rev. Harvey M Lawson, PH.B, B.D.

Daniel Poor: 52 Ancestors Prompt "Poor Man"

Daniel Poor: 1624-1689

The prompt for this week was “Poor Man”.  I wanted to write about one of my distant ancestors who died in the county poor house, but I couldn’t remember which branch of my family he was in or what his name was, so I needed to take a different approach. I turned to the literal: one of my 8^th Great-grandfathers was Daniel Poor—a truly “Poor” man!

Daniel Poor was born around 1623 or 1624 in Wiltshire, England and emigrated to the colonies in 1638 at age 14. He traveled on the ship Bevis from Southhampton, and was listed on the ship’s register as “Dayell Poor, 14, servant”. He married my 8^th Great Grandmother Mary Farnum in Boston on October 20, 1650, and their marriage was one of the first recorded in Essex County Massachusetts. They settled in Andover, Massachusetts, home of Francis Dane, another one of my 8^th great-grandfathers.

Daniel’s occupation in area records was listed as “husbandman”, which was the 17^th century term for farmer. He seems to have been successful, and was obviously well respected in the community, as he served multiple roles in the governance of Andover. He was appointed surveyor in 1673, and served on the Andover Board of Selectmen in 1674, 1675, 1677, 1683, 1684, 1686 and 1687, and as the Grandjuryman in 1681.

By the time of his death in 1689, he had amassed a substantial estate, including hundreds of acres of land, herds of cattle, sheep, swine and horses, and a long list of household items. The will was filed with an inventory listing the value of his holdings and property—the total valuation was over 756 pounds, a large sum for that era. The herds of animals alone were valued at over 61 pounds.

Daniel allowed a garrison house to be built on one of his outlying properties—this was a fortified house that used to protect the community from Indian attacks. An example of a garrison house is pictured below. 

The other photo shows the Benjamin Abbott house, an old Andover house built in 1685 near the time of Daniel’s death, providing an idea of what Daniel’s house might have looked like.

Daniel's will divided his property between his widow and his eleven surviving children—two sons and nine daughters, a large number of children to reach adulthood in that era! My direct ancestor Hannah Poor Dane had already received her portion, apparently at her marriage, so she received nothing at his death. My other direct ancestor, daughter Priscilla Poor Mooar, fared better. The will states: “I give to my daughter Priscilla my meadow on the west side of Shawshin River commonly called the Pond Meadow.” According to the inventory, the meadow land on the west side was worth 40 pounds.

Despite Daniel’s wealth, he apparently was not completely literate—probably not surprising since he was working as a servant at age 14 when he emigrated. His will was signed with “his mark”, shakily drawn initials “D” and “P”.

There is no record of his burial site. Presumably he was laid to rest in the older of Andover’s two burial grounds, but we cannot be sure. Despite Daniel’s surname, he was rich in family and property. His descendants still lived in the area in 1830, when the map below was drawn.

Hoffman Sister Photos: 52 Ancestors Prompt "Trick or Treat"

A Real Treat: Tricky Photos of the Hoffman Girls
Nora Hoffman Macbeth: 1899-1994

                My brother and I were looking through family photos from our maternal grandmother’s family, the children of William and Lena Funk Hoffman. We were surprised at the number of goofy photos featuring our grandmother. Grandma Nora Hoffman Macbeth never seemed the type of person to have clowned around as a young woman. We tended to imagine her working hard during the daytime, and spending evenings sewing and reading serious literature. So ridiculous!

                So for my Trick or Treat prompt, I’m featuring two photos that show my grandmother’s funny side. In the first photo, she and her eldest sister Grace are clowning around with a huge two-person saw, miming being lumberjacks. They probably had used the saw or at least tried to at some point, but in this shot it looks like they were just posing for laughs. The tree they are pretending to saw looks far too healthy and shade-providing to be the target for removal.

                The second photo is even sillier. Nora is perched on a fallen tree (not the one in the first photo, mind you!) with three of her siblings: her brother Elmer at the left, then Nora, then younger sisters Jennie and Edna on the right. Both Elmer and Jennie are sporting fake mustaches. Elmer has a crazy cap on and is pretending to smoke a pipe. Jennie is dressed entirely in men’s clothes, right down to a suit and tie and a spiffy hat.

                Why the costumes? The snow on the ground ensures it was long after Halloween. Amateur theatrics? Just family horseplay? Sadly, Grandma Nora is no longer around to answer the questions we have about the photo, but it certainly provoked some chuckles.

                Tricks and some treats for Grandma’s descendants! I’m sure she’d be pleased to know she can still surprise us!

Lena Funk Hoffman and Billy: 52 Ancestors Prompt "Transportation"

Billy: The Original "Horsepower"

            Looking back through family photos, I am struck by how rapidly means of transportation changed. In the span of a single century, people transitioned from the original “horse power”—a horse pulling a wagon or carriage—to the roaring horsepower of high-performance engines. Most of the photos feature men with horse teams or at the wheel of cars—Model Ts, Model A’s and then the growing variety of cars, trucks and tractors. So when I found a photo of my great-grandmother, Lena Funk Hoffman, holding the reins of a carriage, I was reminded that transportation wasn’t just the province of my male ancestors.

                Lena Hellena Funk was born in Blue Earth County Minnesota on February 12, 1869 to parents Charles Funk and Catherina Grentz. Lena had three half-siblings from her mother’s first marriage, and two full siblings.

                Lena married my great-grandfather William Henry Hoffman on January 31, 1889 at age nineteen. William took over Lena’s father’s farm just outside Mankato, and they had six daughters and one son, including my grandmother Nora Hoffman.

                Lena was obviously an active partner on the farm, so would have been comfortable around horses. I am sure she could harness the horses, hook up wagons and carriages, and handle farm equipment. From my grandmother’s stories, the whole family loved their horses—they were more than just a means of transportation.

                By the time gas-powered cars and tractors came along, Lena was quite elderly. She probably never learned how to drive a car, but even in her later years, she was still getting around by horse and buggy. This charming photo was labeled by my grandmother Nora, and read “Ma and Billy”.  I am guessing that the photo was taken between 1915 and 1921, based on Lena’s appearance and clothing. The family had huge draft horses to pull the farm equipment, but Billy was a smaller horse used for lighter work.

I love that the family horses all had human names like “Billy” (Mom talked about Joe and Daisy as well). I also love how comfortable Lena looks with the reins in her hands. While she may have been limited to vehicles powered by a mere one or two horsepower during her lifetime, Lena was a competent, confident traveler.