Bellinger Family

Title Addition

 

Five daughters link four families: Adeline, Josephine, Camelia, Sarah & Mary Ann Bellinger link Leist, Dose, Bliss and Haver families. There are pages on the site for each of these families (Bellinger & Haver are combined). Below is historical information on the Bellinger family followed by a photo album and family documents.

The following excerpt from a 2007 e-diary by Douglas Lee Baldwin, a descendent of Solomon Bellinger, (http://www.wayfinding.net/Bellinger.htm) provides a detail history of the Bellingers.

“Among the first Dutch and Swedes that settled New York and Delaware in the 17th century were several Germans. Also during the late 17th century many of the first Germans to Germantown, Pennsylvania came through the port of New York and traveled overland 2-3 days to get to Pennsylvania.

The first large group of Germans to North America after the initial Germantown colony was the large exodus of Germans in 1709-1710 to New York. These emigrants began arriving in England in May 1709. Conditions in London and Rotterdam were not good because of the large numbers of emigrants that had to be provided for. Some returned to their homes (including all the Catholics), went on to other parts of England or Ireland (821 families, see, The Palatine Families of Ireland, North Carolina (840 families, 650 going to the New Bern settlement), and West Indies. Of the 13,000 Germans who reached London in 1709, about a quarter of these continued on to New York.

Most of the Palatines for New York began boarding ships in Dec 1709, but did not leave England until April 1710. About 3,100 emigrants sailed on 11 ships to New York and were accompanied by the Governor-Elect Hunter. About 470 Germans perished on the voyage and another 250 after landing. An estimated 2,500 disease-laden emigrants had to be provided for in New York.
In 1723, 60 families from the Schoharie Valley and surrounding regions of New York, most descendants of the 1710 group, emigrated to the southwest to Tulpehocken, Pennsylvania. A second group joined them in 1729 and founded Womelsdorf.

In 2007 I became very interested in my Bellinger ancestors. What sparked this interest was the recently acquired knowledge that the Bellingers were part of a unique time in history; a time that has been extensively studied and recorded. In the general literature the movement that brought the Bellingers to America was the Palatine migration of 1709. Although the migrants were labeled Germans, and specifically Palatinate Germans, they were actually members of the Holy Roman Empire; there was no such thing as "Germany" in 1709. Furthermore, the 15,000 people who left ("suddenly- over a period of several months") were from small communities all over south western "Germany", not just from the Palatine region.

These pioneers left their communities for several reasons. The bottom line (like for most of the pioneers who came to America) was poverty. They were farmers mostly, some with special skills (most had no special skills beside subsidence farming). The winter of 1709 was extremely severe; crops and animals died; the poor were facing starvation. The western Holy Roman Empire was a continual battleground. Wars had been going on in the region for decades. The French were Catholics and many of the Palatinates were Protestants. Even though the broad region in and around the Palatinate was one of religious tolerance; Catholics and Protestants lived alongside Pietists and Reformers (etc.) with little problem, religious intolerance fueled wars that raged throughout the Palatine communities. The impact of continual battle was especially hard on the poorer families.

The English were constantly fighting against Catholics in France and Spain in one "war" after another (all with different names, but essentially the same religious nonsense). English propaganda was distributed in Palatinate regions that suggested the English Queen would welcome emigrants and would provide free passage to America (Carolinas) as well as free land when they got to America. In 1708 a few early "German" pioneers did get free passage and land, and these families communicated back to their homeland. Poverty, the hard winter, and the (essentially) false propaganda fueled a "gold rush" out of the Palatinate, up the Rhine to Rotterdam, and across the channel to London.

Out of the (approximately) 15,000 people who made it to London (and after a complicated political mess in London), about 3,000 of the Palatinates (as they now more or less called themselves- having forged an identity from their shared experience), sailed to New York State. These 3,000 are the "German" pioneers from which our heritage evolved. Among this three thousand was our family pioneer and his family: Johannes Bellinger (the emigrant) and his wife Anna Maria Margaretha Kuhn.

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There is an entire book written about the Bellingers from New York. The book was written by Lyle Frederick Bellinger and is called "Genealogy of the Mohawk Valley Bellingers and Allied Families." Denny Bellinger had a copy of the book which he loaned me. Copyright is 1976 and the book is available from the Herkimer County Historical Society, Herkimer, New York 13350. A quite small book called "The War Years in The Mohawk Valley" was written by Frank C. Bellinger. There is no copyright information and no indication of where to get a copy. Denny let me read this booklet which I'll try to summarize below.

"The War Years in The Mohawk Valley" is a short history of the years 1777 to 1783, a period covering the American Revolution. A famous battle was fought at Oriskany, New York which saved the Mohawk Valley from British rule and led to the British surrender at Saratoga. The Battle of Oriskany, which was fought on August 6, 1777, is not detailed in the text. Most of the booklet is about the Revolutionary War in the Mohawk Valley. The battle of Oriskany is felt to be significant because it was followed quickly by the entrance of the French into the war on the side of the American patriots. Evidently, it convinced the French that the revolution was for real and that the patriots had a chance for victory.

The Oriskany battlefield is north and west of Utica New York. Looking at an historic map of the Mohawk Valley there is a Fort Klock along I-90 between Utica and Schenectady. A Revolutionary War battle called the Battle of Klock's Field took place near Fort Klock.
The commanding officer of Fort Herkimer in the Mohawk Valley was Col. Peter Bellinger. He was in charge when raids started in the Valley in 1778. Peter kept his forces together and fighting the periodic raids of the British and their Indian allies which occurred over the final years of the revolutionary war.

The book "Genealogy of the Mohawk Valley Bellingers and Allied Families." was the work of Lieutenant Commander Lyle Frederick Bellinger of the United States Civil Engineer Corps. There is a picture of the handsome Commander in uniform on the inside cover of the book. The Lieutenant's son, Dr. Frederick Bellinger from Atlanta, Georgia donated his father's genealogical work to the Herkimer County Historical Society in 1974. In 1941 and 42, Lyle Bellinger had written a series of articles on the pre-revolutionary Bellinger family in the "St. Johnsville Enterprise and News." These articles had been made into a book which was part of the nine cartons of donated materials given to the historical society. There is an alcove named after Lyle Bellinger in the Society building with his picture and a dedication plaque.

 

 

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Solomon Bellinger was born in 1812 and married at age 18 in 1830, according to the death certificate. LDS records indicate he was born in 1810, which would put the marriage date at 1828. Rosina, Frederick's first child was born in (about?) 1800, so the marriage with Elizebeth was sometime at the end of the century (1795 to 1800). So, Frederick was probably born 20 years or so sooner. LDS records say he was born in 1772 (which makes him 38 or 40 when Solomon was born).

John Henry Bellinger was born about 1750; Frederick H. was his second child, which he had at the age of 22. This all fits so far (as does the marriage in 1771 to Margaretha Winddecker). John's father Frederick P. Bellinger was born about 1710 (one record says 1712). John was his sixth child (so Frederich P. was 38 or 40 when John was born). The marriage in 1742 fits also (Frederick P. would have been 28 or 30).

Frederick P's father was Frederick Bellinger (senior) who was born in 1680 (making him 30 or 32 when Frederic P was born). If the marriage records are correct Frederick senior married at age 15 (1695). This is not so plausible, but possible. Frederick's father was the emigrant Johannes Bellinger who was born in 1664, making him 16 when his (apparently) first child, Frederick was born. The marriage date to Anna Margaretha was supposedly 1690, ten years after Frederick was born. This does not fit.

Johanne's father Dieterich was born in 1644, making him 20 when Johannes (his first child) was born, and also 20 when he was married to Barbara Gessen (Geysen). If the date of the marriage was 1663, he was 19 and Johannes was born before the wedding.
Hans Bellinger was born in 1615, making him 29 when Dieterich (his third child) was born, and 27 when he married in 1642.
The Bellinger family traces back to the German state of Palatinate which is in the southwestern region of the country (Southwest of Frankfort). The Palatinate ("Pfalz" in German), was the lands of the count Palatine, a secular prince of the Roman Empire. The Palatinate consisted of two regions in southern (modern) German. The lower (Rhenish) palatinate was in southwest Germany between Luxembourg and the Rhine River. Heidelberg was its capital until the 18th century. It included lands on both sides of the middle Rhine River between the Main and Neckar tributaries. The region is called Rheinpfalz or Niederpfalz in German. The Upper Palatinate was in northern Bavaria, on both sides of the Naab River. It is called Oberpfalz in German. Our Bellinger family came from a city in Lower Palatinate called Roderbach. The boundaries varied with political circumstances.

In my family lore we are descendants of a Dutch line. This is probably the lineage that lent itself to that interpretation. The Germans who came out of the German state of Palatinate emigrated to Pennsylvania and New York. They became known as the Pennsylvania Dutch. Germany in the native language is Deutchland.

From about 1689 to 1697 the War of the Grand Alliance ravaged the Rhenish Palatinate, causing many Germans to emigrate. This is Johannes Bellinger's generation. He was the first of this line to emigrate to the United States. It might have been the war that drove him and his family from German.”

End of Baldwin Article

Information gathered by Sheila Gessler Wood, daughter of Pearl Hopkins Gessler, granddaughter of Carrie Dose Hopkins, and great granddaughter of Josephine Ophelia Bellinger Dose. (Included are some additions by Mel Oakes)

Jacob Frederick Bellinger served in the Civil War (CSA Micro Copy No 269, Roll 53, MS. State Archives, Buckners Light Horse Calvary, Co. C. 28th Regimental , CSA.. He was captured at Warrenton, MS(South Warren County). He was held on a Union Navy boat for a number of months. He was discharged July 1862. His may have been a short term enlistment. No record of reason for discharge is given. He was picked up after curfew for intoxication.

Jacob’s will (included below) was made 8 Aug 1877, filed 7 November 1877, by Birchett and Gilland, Attorneys at Law. He left his land and all on it to his wife Nancy Bellinger. The land consisted of 81 acres later to be bequeath to his six children equally. He left his two mules and wagon to his son George and his brown mare to daughter Josephine. (A family story says he named his children after his mules.) Newton J. Hall signed for him since he could not write. Will was ordered , adjudge and decreed 7th May 1883. George Bellinger, E.C. Bliss, Sarah J. Haver, Mary A. Haver, Josephine Dose and A. M. Leist. Jacob's will No. 3031 Warren County Court House. Homestead N1/2 SE1/4, S 39, T17, R4e, A 80. The will executed 1883.

Arnold Funeral Home records in the Old Court House, Warren County, Vicksburg, MS, give account of his death and funeral. Died of typhoid-malarial fever at 54. Typhoid-malarial fever is a common term from the American Civil War. It was proposed by an Army surgeon, Joseph Janvier Woodward, to describe the many cases of camp fever that combined elements from typhoid fever, malarial remittent fever, and scurvy to varying degrees. He felt that typhoid-malarial fever was the most common of the camp fevers, which included all of the continued fevers suffered by the men in the army. The term was adopted by the army board to describe these fevers with combined symptoms

New York Census , Town of Norway, Herkimer Co, NY 16 Aug. 1850
Bellinger, Jacob F Jr. age 26 M Farmer, Value of Real Estate $100 born 1824.
Nancy age 20 F
Mary Ann age 7 school
Frances age 5 school
Camelia or Cornelia age 4 school
Adeline 3
Theodocia 1

In the 1860 Census, they are in Vicksburg, MS under Ballinger

Ballinger, Jacob age 36 M Farmer, Value of Real Estate $450
Nancy age 36 F
Parmelia age 12 F
Adeline age 12 F
Walter age 10 M
Nancy age 5 F
George age 3 M
Josephine age 2 F
W.S. Lilley age 21 M
Sarah Ballinger age 13 F
(Note: Sarah is listed at end of list which often means stepchild, however it could be she was overlooked when recording the entry. She is in the 1850 Census under Frances.)

In 1965 New York Census, they were back in Norway, Herkimer, New York. They lived in a frame house with a value of $50. Presumably they returned to escape involvement in the Civil War. The Census has information about officers and enlisted men who served. Jacob is not listed.

Jacob Bellinger age 40, born Herkimer, stated he was parent of 11 chidren. no profession listed.
Nancy Bellinger age 38, born Herkimer, stated she was parent of 11 children
Sarah Bellinger age 20, born Herkimer
Adaline Bellinger age 16, born Herkimer
Geo Bellinger age 8, born Mississippi (year of birth 1857)
Josephine Bellinger age 6, born Mississippi (year of birth 1859)

In 1870, they are in the Census under Bellinga in Vicksburg:

Jacob Bellinga 54
Nancy Bellinga 54
George Bellinga 12
Josephine Bellinga 11

In the 1850 Census, Herkimer County, NY, Nancy and Jacob Bellinger Jr. were living close to Jacob Bellinger Sr.(age 61 b.1789) and his second wife Julia Ann (Dibble)(age 52 b. 1798). The Bellinger book says that Jacob Sr's. first wife was Betsy Ingersoll and that she died about 1828. Others listed in Jacob Sr. family: Emily (age 21 b. 1829), David (age 19, b. 1831), Elizabeth (age 18, b. 1832) Jane (age 16, b. 1834), Asa (age 13, b. 1837), Henry (age 9, b 1841).

I date the arrival of Jacob and Nancy in Vicksburg in the fall of 1853. There are old school records for Vicksburg in the research room of the Old Court House Museum. The Herkimer County NY census shows the family there in 1850. Jacob and Nancy's children are not listed in the VB school records until 1853. The VB school records are 1849-1860.

There was a Luther Bellinger in Vicksburg, MS in the 1830's. His first marriage was to Mary Ann Redding in 1835. I have heard that Luther was Jacob's brother and that he was Jacob's cousin! Grandma Carrie told me that her grandfather, Jacob Bellinger and his family had been accompanied to Vicksburg by Jacob's brother, John. Also, that John didn't stay, but moved to Ohio. I assumed it was the state of Ohio. However, I found John Bellinger listed in the book, Genealogy of the Mohawk Valley Bellingers and Allied Families by Frederick Bellinger. In that book is the following sentence. "He moved to Vicksburg, MS in 1853 for 11 months or 1 1/2 years." The quote was taken from Child's Gazetter of Jefferson County, NY page 254. Most interesting, to me, was the note that John then moved to Ohio, Herkimer County!!!! He was born in Boonville, NY Oneida County. John died in 1888.

School Records Vicksburg, Miss. Warren County(Collected by Sheila Gessler Wood, I think.)
Only one of the records show Elizabeth Camelia and Adeline the same ages, suggesting they were not twins.
1851-1852
Elizabeth Bellinger(Luther Bellinger’s daughter)
1855-1854
Elizabeth Ballinger age 6(Luther Bellinger’s daughter)
Elizabeth C. Bellinger age 6
Mary Ann Ballinger age 9
1854-1855
Mary Ballinger 10
Sarah Ballinger 9
Elizabeth Bellinger 8
Adelaide Bellinger 6
1855-56
Mary Ballinger 12
Sarah Ballinger 11
Camelia Bellinger 8
1856-57
Elizabeth Bellinger 12
Sarah Ballinger 11
Camelia Ballinger 10
Adeline Bellinger 10
1858-59
Walter Bellinger 7
Elizabeth Bellinger 13
Addie Ballinger 10
Sarah Bellinger 13
Mary Bellinger 14
1859-1860
Walter Ballinger 8
Sarah Bellinger 14
Elizabeth Ballinger
Addie Bellinger

(Entry found by Mel Oakes in Herkimer Records that support Sheila’s research, “BELLINGER, JOHN, Norway, was born in Remsen, September 15, 1820. He was a son of Jacob and Elizabeth (INGERSOLL) BELLINGER, who reared three children. Mrs. BELLINGER died and Mr. BELLINGER married Julia DIBBLE, by whom he had seven children. Jacob BELLINGER was born in Oppenheim and afterwards settled in Bellingertown, in Remsen, the former named in honor of his uncle and father. During the latter years of his life. Mr. BELLINGER lived with the subject in Ohio, where he died in 1874. John BELLINGER was reared on a farm. His mother died when he was six years of age, and since the age of nine years he has supported himself. In 1848 he married Lydia ANTHONY, by whom he has three sons and one daughter. Mr. BELLINGER owns 130 acres of land. He is a Democrat in politics. In 1884 Mrs. BEILLINGER died and he married Lizzie MULLEN of Crogan, Jefferson country. He and wife are members of the M.E. Church. [Ref.#1 p. 375/150]”

Mel Oakes-(I found the complete entry in the Child’s Gazetter of Jefferson County-Town of Alexandria on John first found by Sheila Wood) “John Bellinger was born in Boonville, N. Y., December 13, 1820. In 1848, he married Lydia Anthony, of Shufty Corners, town of Theresa, and about five years later removed with his wife to Vicksburg, Miss., where he resided a year and a half, when he returned to New York and located in the town of Ohio. Their children were Luther, Sarah J., Mary E., Nancy, John H., and Frederick. Luther Bellinger was born in Boonville, Mary 2, 1849. He was educated in the district schools and did pioneer work on his father's farm. November 11, 1877, when 28 years of age, he married Emily, daughter of Horace Barrows, of Orleans, and they had two children, Frank E., and Tenne C. They were married in their present home on Wall street, in Plessis village.”

Our Jacob is not listed in the book of the Mohawk Valley Bellingers. Nevertheless, I do think I found his family but have no proof. If this is our family, they were in America very early. The 1711 NY state pay roll records pay to Johannes Bellinger for his carpenter work.

Link to early history of Norway, New York: http://herkimer.nygenweb.net/norway/norwayfragments.html
Link to sketches of various Bellinger’s in upstate New York: http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nyhchs/familysketches/b.html

Above is an entry from Ella Leist’s Bible referring to Jacob and Nancy Bellinger. The last word in the second line is Nancy. The first word in the third line appears to be “Seneed” followed by ‘decedo or deceds”, I suggest this is deceased. This is the only clue to the maiden name of Nancy Bellinger. Anyone with any ideas or information, please email me.

A number of mysteries related to the Bellinger family need clarification. Mary Ann’s tombstone list birth 1838, this is too early for parent’s ages, 1843 works from a number of standpoints. Robert Haver found Fisher Funeral Home records says she died at 46 in 1890, giving 1843-44.

Unresolved however are too many births during the 1848-50 period. Theodocia, girl’s name is only in 1850 Census. Josia M., boy’s name, is in the records of Norway, Herkimer County, NY as born 1849 to Jacob and Nancy Bellinger. Adeline is not in the Norway records as listed on the Norway historical web site. Since this information was gathered from a variety of sources, Adeline could have been overlooked, however they include Josia in the year she is supposed to have been born. In the 1865 New York census, Jacob and Nancy said they have 11 children.

Lyle Frederick Bellinger

Here are several pictures and documents related to Lyle Frederick Bellinger (1867-1952). The young cadet picture was kindly provided by Tiffaney Piper who found it in an the garage of an elderly neighbor of her mother. They were clearing it out. She found the name on the back and found my web site, contacted me and sent me the picture. Many thanks to her for her efforts to get the photo to some Bellinger family member. Lyle is especially important to the Bellingers having written a book about the Bellinger history. His connection to Jacob Frederick Bellinger needs to be worked out.

Lyle Frederick Bellinger was born in Mohawk, NY to Lorentz Milton and Margaret Ashley Bellinger. He was a career officer in the United States Army, serving as a Civil Engineer. He graduated from Cornell University in 1887. In the 1920 Cornell U. catalog, Lyle is listed as having attended 1883-87 and studied Civil Engineering. Lyle also earned an M.A. from Norwich University in 1888. He married Annie Beall Dobbs (b. ?-1952). As a result of his military career, the family often moved around the country and also lived in military installations in the Philippines, Japan, and Cuba. After his retirement from the military, Lyle Frederick Bellinger devoted a great deal of time to research of his genealogy and family history. He published three books about the Bellinger family line.

His research files were passed to his son Frederick. Frederick Bellinger was born 14 August 1904 in New Orleans. He was educated and received a degree in Engineering from Georgia Tech in 1926. In 1934 he began a graduate program. He completed a Masters of Science at Emory University and his doctorate at Yale by 1937. Also, during these years, he became an officer in the United States Army Reserves. With the beginning of World War II Frederick Bellinger was commissioned a Major in the United States Army as a Chief Chemical Engineer. Throughout the war his work focused on developing chemical propellants for rocket engines, an attempt to counteract the German “buzz bombs.” With the conclusion of the war, Frederick Bellinger left the Army, remaining in the reserves, and began teaching as an Assistant Professor at Georgia Tech. He remained at Georgia Tech until 1977. He retired just months before he died 22 October 1978. He had married Marie Parker in 1937 in Atlanta, GA. The couple had one daughter, Barbara Lynn, who was adopted by the Bellingers in 1947.

For more information about Lyle Frederick Bellinger, click here...More

 

Bellinger Photo Gallery

Bellinger Documents

(Thanks to Robert Haver for supplying several of them.)
Doc. 1-Jacob F. Bellinger’s Will, Written August 8, 1877, (8 pages)
Doc. 2-Michael Haver and Mary Ann Bellinger’s Marriage License April 8, 1859, Marriage April 10, 1859 (1 page)
Doc. 3-George Haver and Sarah Frances Bellinger’s Marriage License and Marriage-January 27, 1862 (1 page)
Doc. 4-William Henry Albert Bliss and Elizabeth Carmelia Bellinger’s Marriage License-February 3, 1864
Doc. 5-Bartley Tucker and Ada M. Bellinger’s Marriage License and Marriage-October 23, 1867
Doc. 6-Samuel Leist and Adeline M. Tucker marriage license, January 17, 1972
Doc. 7-George Bellinger and Maggie Tillman’s Marriage License and Marriage-June 11, 1898
Doc. 8-George Bellinger and Maggie Tillman’s Marriage Affidavit-June 11, 1898
Doc. 9-Walter Samuel Haver-WWI Registration

Doc. 1-Jacob F. Bellinger’s Will, Written August 8, 1877, (8 pages), other pages follow:

Walter Bellinger has been left out of the will. He is not listed in the body of the will or the signature page. I have no death date
for him so he could have been deceased. (Thanks to Robert Franklin Haver for raising the question discussed her.)

Doc. 2-Michael Haver and Mary Ann Bellinger’s Marriage License-April 8, 1859, Marriage April 10, 1859

Doc. 3-George Haver and Sarah Frances Bellinger’s Marriage License and Marriage-January 27, 1862

Doc. 4-William Henry Albert Bliss and Elizabeth Carmelia Bellinger’s Marriage License and Marriage-February 3, 1864

Doc. 5-Bartley Tucker and Ada M. Bellinger’s Marriage License and Marriage-October 23, 1867. This marriage was not a good one for Addie, Bartley abused alcohol and her. Bartley's brother James tried to stop the abuse in October of 1871 and became involvcd in a knife fight, James killed Bartley. He was not prosecuted. Below we see that Addie married Sam Leist four months later. It was a good marriage, however while waiting for Sam to return home, she slipped off the Yazoo River bank and drowned in 1908.

Doc. 6-Samuel Leist and Adeline M. Tucker marriage license, January 17, 1972, including a $200 bond to be forfeited if the marriage does not take place. Brides father Jacob Bellinger is a co-guarantee with Sam. Vicksburg, MS.

Doc. 7-George Bellinger and Maggie Tillman’s Marriage License and Marriage-June 11, 1898

Doc. 8-George Bellinger and Maggie Tillman’s Marriage Affidavit-June 11, 1898

Doc. 9-Walter Samuel Haver’s WWI Draft Registration Card. If he continued to work in this shop till 1922, he would have known Fred Oakes who came to work there as a 19 year old. Fred was the son of Walter’s first cousin Mary Sophie Dose and grandson of Josephine Bellinger Dose

 

 

 

The records below raise some questions. In 1848, Elizabeth C. (presumably Camelia) is born to Jacob and Nancy Bellinger on Feb 4, 1848. There is no entry for supposedly her twin, Adeline Melissa Bellinger. The birthdate varies from April 14 which is often reported. In 1849, Josia M. Bellinger is born to Jacob and Nancy Bellinger on September 6. I have no other record of this birth so maybe he died before the 1850 Census. The 1850 Census contains a Theodocia (female), age 1. Whether Josia and Theodocia can be referring to the same person is to be determined.

TOWN OF NORWAY
HERKIMER COUNTY, NY
BIRTHS 1848 - 1849

These listings of vital records for the Town of Norway, 1848 - 1849, were digitally prepared by Helen Wheatley, Norway Town Historian, from photocopies of typescripts provided to her. The transcriptions of the original records came from Volume 357 (1970-71) of the miscellaneous unpublished records of the New York State D.A.R., available for your perusal at the main branch of the New York City Public Library, at the State Library in Albany, NY, and at the D.A.R. Library in Washington, D.C.
Maiden names weren't listed on the original vital records and where Helen was able to she provided them for us. We hope this list provides clues to ancestral location and helps you better formulate questions when visiting Mohawk Valley societies or ordering mail searches. If you recognize anyone on this list, please drop a line to Martha so we can note it on this page.
As you scan the listings you'll see unusual spellings. They're not typos but can be attributed to well-known difficulties in reading fragile records with old handwriting, as well as assumptions made by the registrars of the births. If a spelling differs from that of your ancestral surname, or births didn't take place in the town you thought your ancestors were from, don't pass them by. Jot them down...just in case. A date and location from these vital records can be used to search in the 1850 census or the info may turn out useful to others searching your surnames.
During years 1847 - 1850 some New York State counties officially recorded information about births, marriages and deaths. Then they just stopped. Not all towns recorded or preserved this early information so each town/county must be taken on a case-by-case basis. Required birth registration didn't start in New York State until the early 1880s, over 30 years after the 1847 - 1849 events were recorded, and wasn't really enforced until 1900. New York State death registration wasn't enforced until just after 1900.

TOWN OF NORWAY VITAL STATISTICS FOR THE YEARS 1848 - 1849

NORWAY BIRTHS 1848
CHILD - BIRTHDATE - PARENTS

Mothers' maiden names provided by Helen Wheatley, Norway Town Historian.
AUSTIN,Hiram, Benjamin & not given, June 11
BELLINGER, Elizabeth C., Jacob Bellinger & Nancy, Feb. 4
BRONDSTATTER, Josephene, John Brondstatter, not given, June 10
BULLOCK, Alfred Eugene, Samuel & Amanda Warren Bullock, Jan. 15
CARPENTER, female not named, Nelson & Pamelia Farrington Carpenter, Jan. 13
CURTIS, female not named, Benjamin Curtis & Selina, Nov. 15
DOWNER, John M., Adna P. Downer & Lydia M., Mar. 28
GAGE, female not named, Stephen & Eliza Lobdell Gage, Dec. 16
HALL,Martha, Warren Hall & Sarah, Sept 17
HALL, Barney R., Dennis T. Hall & Fanny, July 13
HOWARD, James H., Henry Howard & Prussia, June 13
HUMPHREVILLE, Emma, Reuben Humphreville & Eliza Jane, Apr. 16
NICHOLS, Emma Melissa, Joseph Nichols & Elizabeth, Mar. 6
POST, Charles N., Charles R. Post & Rebecca Ann, Mar. 3
PRATT, Emily F., illegitimate, Abby E. Pratt, July 1
PRESCOTT, Mary Amelia, Francis & not given, Jan. 3
RANDALL, Elvenah M., Elisha O. Randall & Maria, Sept. 26
RICH, Emily F., Horace Rich & Betsy, Nov. 21
RUST, Rozell Alonzo, Alonzo Rust & Ursula, Mar. 4
SALISBURY, Ellen C., Ackland & Maria Service Salisbury, Aug. 26
SISSON, Rebecca, Roland Sisson & Elizabeth, Jan. 22
SHIBLEY, George, Josiah Shibley & not given, Aug. 11
SMITH, Ellen A., Daniel & Marcy Barnes Smith, Jan. 28
SMITH, female not named, Jackson Smith & Phoebe, Mar. 17
SMITH, Eugenia, Rufus Smith & Betsy, July 24
SMITH, male not named, David Smith & Maria, Oct. 8
SMITH, Marietta, Johnson & Harriet Hine Smith, Oct. 14
SMITH, Hoxie, Darius Smith & Elizabeth, Dec. 5
STEBBINS, female not named, Henry R. Stebbins & Ruth Em, Oct. 18
VEDDER, Aaron Jr., Aaron Vedder & Helen, Aug. 15
WHITING, Gardiner A., Ambrose Whiting & Amanda, Mar. 3 [See note at end of page]

NORWAY BIRTHS 1849
CHILD - BIRTHDATE - PARENTS

Mothers' maiden names provided by Helen Wheatley, Norway Town Historian.
AUSTIN, James W., Jeremiah Austin & Allie, Aug 21
BAKER, Sarah Ann, Wilbur & Ann Tompkins Baker, Oct. 22
BARNES, Mary Jane, James & Jane Gibson Barnes, May 22
BELLINGER, Josia M., Jacob Bellinger & Nancy, Sept. 6
BENJAMIN, Emily Jane, Samuel Benjamin & Laura Ann, Apr. 7
BLY, Ruth M., Alanson Bly & Laura, Sept. 17
BLY, William, Clark Bly & Almira, June 17
BRAGG, female not named, James W. & Sarah Henderson Bragg, Nov. 16
CARPENTER, Dudley J., Edward Carpenter & Thankful, Jan. 19
CARPENTER, Mary Eliza, William Carpenter & Elisa, Aug. 19
CASE, Stephen I., George Case & Mary, Nov. 23
DAVIS, Alfred, Samuel Davis & Harriet, May 11
DOWNER not named, sex not given, Aaney Downer & Lydia, Dec. 9
ENSBODY, William Henry, Isaac Ensbody & Phoebe Jane, July 11
HOLT, Edward D. Holt & Mary D. W., Feb. 11
HUMPHREVILLE, Charles Eugene, Reuben Humphreville & Eliza Jane, Mar. 21
MARVEL, Eliza Ann, Harvey Marvel & Jane, Apr. 6
MATTESON, Amelia J. & Adelia L. (twins), William C. Matteson & Ann, May 18
PALMER, Sarah D., Lucius Palmer & Ann, Sept. 15
PRESCOTT, William Henry, Francis T. & Olive Wright Prescott, Sept. 3
PULLMAN, Jenette, William Pullman & Margaret, Aug. 4
SISSON, Edwin E., Melvin Sisson & Betsy, Dec. 2
SISSON, James H., Roland E. Sisson & Elizabeth, Apr. 7
SMITH, Seth Jackson, Jackson Smith & Phoebe, Apr. 15
SMITH, male not named, Johnson & Harriet Hine Smith, Dec. 9
WALRATH, Emma Jane, Emanuel Walrath & Emma Jane, May 3

Doc. 9-Walter Samuel Haver’s WWI Draft Registration Card. If he continued to work in this shop till 1922, he would have known Fred Oakes who came to work there as a 19 year old. Fred was the son of Walter’s first cousin Mary Sophie Dose and grandson of Josephine Bellinger Dose.

Herkimer County: A Brief History

 

Herkimer County, composed of nineteen towns, extends from the Adirondacks to the Mohawk Valley. The vast forests to the north provide wood products and the recreational opportunities of the Adirondack Park while the southern valleys are favorable for agriculture and dairying. Various products are manufactured in factories along the Mohawk River and its larger tributaries. Tourism increases yearly due to the Erie Canal, New York State Thruway, and the Adirondacks

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The Mohawks, members of the Iroquois Confederacy, inhabited the area that was to become Herkimer County prior to 1720. The Palatines settled on the Burnettsfield Patent granted by Governor William Burnett in 1723. While thriving on the fertile valley soil and utilizing the available waterpower for mills, the Palatines fought to protect their homes during the French and Indian War and the Revolution.
General Nicholas Herkimer's force of 800 Palatines succeeded in holding off an attack of British and Indians at Fort Stanwix in 1777, thereby protecting the Mohawk Valley. Fort Herkimer and Fort Dayton provided protection for the settlers who were able to maintain their prosperous farms at the end of the hostilities.
The selling by the state of Sir William Johns

on's large Royal Grant brought flocks of New Englanders who settled north of the Mohawk. They rapidly cut down the virgin forest, burned the wood creating a potash industry, and began to grow wheat. Communities developed near sources of waterpower and soon the hill country was home to many small villages.

When westward expansion provided access to land more suitable for growing wheat, Herkimer County farmers realized that dairying would be a more profitable use of their land. The lack of a mass market for milk led to the production of cheese. By the 1850s Little Falls was the location of a world famous cheese market. Later the railroads gave access to the downstate market for milk and the cheese industry began to decline.

The Erie Canal caused the development of large valley villages and provided a means to transport goods east and west. The oldest Herkimer County industry, Remington Arms, still plays a major role in the county's economy. During the last 200 years, many products were produced in Herkimer County including rifles, typewriters, farm equipment, furniture, textiles, shoes, data recorders, bicycles, nutcrackers, paper, and dairying equipment. Immigrants from Ireland and later from eastern and southern Europe arrived to work in local industries and agriculture, providing a diversity of culture.

First a part of Albany County, this area was set off as Tryon County in 1772. Later changed to Montgomery County, it was still too large and Herkimer County was cut off and established in 1791. Later additions and subtractions were made until 1817 when Herkimer County assumed its present form.

Herkimer County is a treasure trove of history and scenic beauty, a great place to visit and a wonderful place to live.