How Long My Family Has Been In Indiana 2

Here is an examination of the rest of the Forkner / Clifford branches presence in the state of Indiana.

Family #7 - The Showalters and Farmers who married into the Hollingsworth Family

9. Abraham Showalter was born in 1778, married in 1802 and died in 1869. I don’t have locations for these events, but he lived in Franklin County, Virginia and Henry County, Indiana.

8. Abraham and his wife Frances had a daughter named Mary who was born in 1802 and probably lived in Indiana, considering that her father, husband and son all resided in that state.

8. John Farmer was born in 1794 and married in 1820. He resided in Franklin County, Virginia and Wayne County, Indiana.

7. John and Mary had a son, Isaiah, who was born in 1825, married in 1844 and died in 1853. I do not have locations for any of these events, but I do know that he resided in Henry and Madison counties in Indiana.

6. Mary Ellen Farmer was Isaiah’s daughter with his wife, Elizabeth Fifer. She was born in 1850 and died in 1928 in Madison County, Indiana. She resided in Anderson, Indiana.

Family #8 - The Fifers who married into the Farmer family

8. John Fifer was born in 1784 and married in 1808. He died in Indiana.

7. His daughter Elizabeth married Isaiah Farmer. She was born in 1816 and died in 1892. It is probable that she lived in Indiana since her husband did and since her father died in that state.

Family #9 - The Forkners

8. Isaac Forkner was born in 1775 in Surry County, North Carolina. He married Mourning Moura Lawrence in Grayson Virginia in 1797 and died in 1863 in Wayne County, Indiana.

7. Isaac and Mourning had a son, Jesse, who was born in 1798 in Surry County, North Carolina. He married Hannah Cornelious in 1817 in Virginia and died in 1844 in Madison County, Indiana.

6. Jesse’s son Samuel was the first Forkner born in Indiana. He was born in 1821 in Henry County, Indiana. He married in 1844 to Elizabeth McShirley (his first marriage) and died in 1872 in Madison County, Indiana.

5. Elizabeth and Samuel had a son they named Martin Luther. He was born in 1850 in Madison County, Indiana. His second marriage was to Victoria Belle Sharpe and they wed in 1891 in Anderson Indiana. Martin died in 1937 in Anderson.

4. Martin and Victoria had a son they named Samuel Ray. He was born in Anderson Indiana in 1892. He died in 1956 in Anderson Indiana. He was my great great grandfather.

Family #10 - The Cornelious', who married into the Forkner family

8. George Cornelious was born in Madison County, Indiana in 1774.

7. His daughter Hannah was born in 1800 in Indiana. I’ve also seen Pennsylvania as a birth place for her, but find Indiana more believable since that is where her father was born. She died in 1853 in Madison County, Indiana. She married Jesse Forkner.

Family #11 - The McShirleys married into the Forkners

6. Elizabeth McShirley was born in Macon County, Kentucky in 1825 and died in 1858 in Henry County, Indiana. She married Samuel Forkner.

Family #12 - The Sharps, who married into the Forkner family

6. Samuel Sharpe was born in 1832 in Rush County Indiana

6. Malinda Heflin was also born in Rush County, Indiana, but she was born in 1836.

5. Their daughter Victoria Belle was born in 1858 in Rush County, Indiana and died in 1918 in Anderson Indiana. She married Martin Luther Forkner.

How Long My Family Has Been In Indiana 1

My father was born in Indiana. After my recent post on how long my family has been in Ohio, I thought I'd see how long his branch has been in Indiana. And I found out that the Forkner / Clifford branch has been there, just as long as the Finks have been in Ohio. There's so much information though, that I plan to split this post. So here's the first post covering the first six families.

Family #1 - Clifford, Pierce, Forkner, Cookman

10. Johnathon Clifford was born in 1769 in Rumney, Grafton, New Hampshire. He resided in Barnet, Vermont and Fayette County, Indiana and died in 1836 in Fayette, Indiana.

9. His wife Sarah Pierce was born in 1774 in Barnet, Caledonia, Vermont and died in 1862 in Indiana.

8. Johnathon and Sarah had a son , Isaac. He was born in 1812 in Vermont and married in 1841. I don’t have a death date for him, or a location of his marriage or death. However, considering that his parents died in Indiana and his son was born in Indiana, one can assume that he at least lived in the state for a period of time.

7. Emery Clifford is the son of Isaac and his wife Mary. He was born in 1842 in Fairview, Fayette County, Indiana (the first Clifford born in Indiana!) and married Letitia Makepeace in 1864. He died in 1915 in Indiana. IN

6. Emery and Letitia had a son named Hadley, who was born in Anderson, Indiana in 1869. This is our first Anderson birth! He married Daisy Hollingsworth in 1891 and died in 1957 in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana.

5. Harriet Clifford was Hadley and Daisy’s daughter. She was born in 1898 in Anderson Indiana and married Samuel Ray Forkner in 1918 in Anderson, Indiana. I don’t have a death date for her.

4. Harriet’s daughter is my grandmother – Kathleen Frances Forkner. She was born in Indiana and married Donald Cookman.

3. Their son Clifford (my father) was also born in Indiana. However, he moved to Ohio, so as we already know, I was born there and not in Indiana. BUT, my uncles’ children (2) were all born in Indiana and my cousins’ Casi and Jessica both have children that were born in Indiana (1). So that gives us ten generations of the family in Indiana.

Family #2 - The Sangstons, who married into the Cliffords.

9. Isaac Sangston died in 1828 and resided in Fayette County, Indiana.

8. His son William was died in 1833 and resided in Brownsville, Indiana.

7. And his daughter Mary Sangston married Isaac Clifford. She was born in 1822 and died in 1866. I don’t have locations for either, but assume she lived in Indiana for at least a period of time, since her father and grandfather lived in Indiana and her son was born in Indiana.

Family #3 - The Makepeaces, who also married into the Cliffords

8. Amasa Makepeace was born in 1777, married in 1800 and died in 1848 in Chesterfield, Union Township, Madison County, Indiana. He resided in Norton, Mass. and Chesterfield, Indiana.

8. Betsey Babbitt was born in 1784 and died in 1858 in Chesterfield, Madison County, Indiana.

7. Amasa and Betsey’s son Alfred was born in 1804 in Norton Mass. I also found that he may have been born in Chesterfield, Madison County, Indiana. He married Hannah Irish in 1828 in Madison County Indiana, resided in Anderson, and died in 1874.

6. Their daughter Letitia (Emery Clifford’s wife) was born 1842 in Chesterfield Indiana and died in 1926 in Anderson Indiana. She lived in both cities during her lifetime.

Family #4 - The Irishs, who married into the Makepeace family

8. James M Irish was born in the 1780s in New York and married in Rensselaer County, New York. He died around 1861 either in Texas or in Madison County, Indiana. Since he’s buried in Madison County, I personally lean towards Indiana as his death place, unless they moved his body.

8. His wife Elizabeth Dibble was born in the late 1780s / early 1790s in Connecticut and died in 1869 in Pendleton, Madison County, Indiana.

7. James and Elizabeth’s daughter Hannah (wife of Amasa Makepeace) was born in 1810 in Nassau, Rensselaer County, New York and died in 1858 in Anderson, Madison County, Indiana.

Family #5 - The Hollingsworths, who married into the Cliffords

8. Elias Hollingsworth was born in 1794 in Fish Dam Townhip, Old 96^th District, Union County, South Carolina. He married Elizabeth Curtis in 1814 in Clark County Ohio and died in 1846 in Osage County Missouri. He may have lived in Indiana for a time before moving on to Missouri.

8. His wife Elizabeth was born in 1795 in Harrison County, Virginia and died in 1849 in Indiana, either in Lafayette, Tippecanoe County or Richland Township, Madison County. You may remember Elizabeth from my Pioneers post a little while ago – she was the first white woman in Madison County.

7. Elias and Elizabeth’s son James was born in 1815 in Springfield, Clark County, Ohio. He married Mary Elizabeth Shinkle in 1836 in Fall Creek, Madison County, Indiana. James died in 1902in Lafayette Township Tippacanoe County Indiana.

6. James and Mary Elizabeth had a son named George, the first Hollingsworth born in Anderson, Indiana, in 1843. He married Mary Farmer in 1858 and died in the early 1890s in Anderson, Indiana.

5. Daisy Hollingsworth was the daughter of George and Mary. She was born in 1873, probably in Indiana since that is where he father was born. She died in 1940 in Anderson, Indiana. She was the wife of Hadley Clifford, mentioned above.

Family #6 - The Shinkles who married into the Hollingsworths

8. Henry Shinkle was born in the mid 1790s in Pennsylvania, probably in Heidleberg. He married his wife Maria Margaret in 1814 in Feesburg Ohio and died in 1857 in Osage Missouri. I’d like to note here that my great uncle Dick’s research puts Henry’s death in 1827. Henry lived in Indiana.

7. Mary Elizabeth Shinkle (wife of James Hollingsworth) was born in 1819 in Feesburg, Ohio. She died in 1891 in Indiana, either in Anderson or in Lafayette Township, Madison County.

How Long My Family Has Been in Ohio

Growing up, my mom always told me that I was the tenth generation of her father's family to be in Ohio. I always figured that maybe we'd been French trappers (we have a lot of French blood) and that we'd definitely intermarried with the Native Americans. So today I looked through my research and started tracing back. First I did those born in Ohio and got back seven generations which is still pretty respectable. If I add in those who died in Ohio, I only get to nine generations - on more than one branch of the Fink family. I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get to ten but that only means that I need more research, right?

So here we go:

Family #1 - Carson, Savage, Braley, Fink, Cookman

9. Alice Carson was born in Hallowell, Maine around 1752. She married Joseph Savage in the same town and he died in Augusta Maine in 1809. Alice died sometime before 1840 in Rutland, Ohio.

8. Alice and Joseph had a daughter, also named Alice. She was born in 1782 in Belgrade Maine and married Amos Braley in Sidney Maine in 1800. She died in 1848 in Rutland, Ohio.

8. Amos Braley was born in 1776 in Augusta Maine and died in 1840 in Rutland, Ohio.

7. Amos and Alice had a son named Newell. He was born in 1810 in Sidney Maine and died in 1884 in Rutland, Ohio.

My guess is that Alice Carson came with her daughter and son in law to Ohio sometime after her husband's death and her grandson Newell's birth.

6. The first Braley to be born in Ohio was Rufus, son of Newell and his wife Susannah Palmer. He was born about 1834 in Ohio and married in 1858 in Jackson County, Ohio.

5. In 1873, Rufus and his wife Euclid had a son - Ripley McClintock Braley. He was born in Milton Township, Ohio; married in 1899 in Jackson County, Ohio and died in 1969 in Jackson County, Ohio.

4. Ripley and his wife Cora had a daughter - Calfernie Euclid (named after both her grandmothers, the poor thing) born in 1902 in Wellston, Ohio. She died in 1986, in Ohio.

3. Her son was my grandfather - William Ripley Fink. He was born in 1928 in Wellston, Ohio and died in 1982 in Hamilton, Ohio.

2. My mother Helen Marie Fink was born in Hamilton, Ohio.

1. And then there's me - Jennilee Cookman, born in Hamilton, Ohio in 1981.

Family #2 - Palmer, Braley, Fink, Cookman

9. William Palmer was born in New York and died in Jackson County, Ohio in 1820.

8. His son Austin was born in New York and married Sarah / Sally Frazee in 1811 in Gallia County, Ohio. In 1851, he died in Jackson County, Ohio.

7. Remember Susannah Palmer, Newell Braley's wife? Well, she was the daughter of Austin and Sally and was probably born around 1812 in Ohio.


Family #3 - McClintock, Braley, Fink, Cookman

Remember poor Euclid, wife of Rufus Braley? Well she's a sixth generation --

6. Euclid McClintock was born in Jackson County, Ohio in 1836. She died in Milton Township, Jackson County, Ohio in 1910.

Family #4 - Macomber, Bishop, Gleason, Braley, Fink, Cookman

7. Sarah Ellen Macomber was born in Ohio around 1824 and married a man named Thomas Bishop. She died in 1909.

6. Their daughter Calefernie was born in Ohio in 1843 and died there in 1910.

6. Her husband Levi Gleason was also born in Ohio, in 1835. They married in Gallia County, Ohio in 1859 and he died in 1897 in Ohio. The 1880 census entry for Levi says that both his parents were born in Ohio, but I haven't found their names and information (yet). But that gives us two more seven generation.

5. Levi and Calefernie had a daughter, Cora Evangeline Gleason. She was born in 1877 in Gallia County, Ohio, married Ripley Braley and died in 1952 in Jackson, Ohio. Her daughter, Calfernie Euclid is mentioned above.

Family #5 -- Henger, Eagle, Deckard, Dupre, Fink, Cookman

9. Maria Elisabetha Henger was born in Virginia in 1754. She married George S Eagle and died in 1847 in Racoon Township, Gallia County, Ohio.

9. George S Eagle was born in 1751 in Berks County, Pennsylvania. He married Maria Elisabetha around 1753 and died in 1831 in Racoon Township, Gallia County, Ohio.

8. Maria Elisabetha and George had a daughter named Hannah. She was born in the late 1700s (either in 1781 or 1791) in Greenbriar County, West Virginia and died in 1862 in Gallia County, Ohio. Hannah married Richard Deckard in 1798 or 1802 in Greenbriar, Virginia.

7. And they had a daughter named Mary (Polly). She was born in 1814 in Greenbriar, Virginia and died in 1888 in Huntington Township, Ohio.

7. Mary Deckard married Abraham Dupre in 1833 in Vinton, Gallia County, Ohio. He was born around 1810 on the Isle of Jersey. Abraham died in Sciotoville, Gallia County, Ohio in 1894.

6. Mary and Abraham had a son, also called Abraham. And he is the first Dupre born in Ohio. He was born in 1834 in Huntington, Ohio and married Minerva Clark in 1855 in Gallia County, Ohio. He died in 1912.

5. Minerva Jane was the daughter of Abraham and Minerva. She was born in 1879 in Huntington, Ohio; married William Golden Fink in 1901 in Gallia County, Ohio and died in 1951 in Columbus, Ohio.

4. Minerva and William's son Homer was born in 1902 in Rocky Hill, Bloomfield, Jackson County, Ohio. He married Calfernie Euclid in 1923 in Wellston, Ohio and died in 1968 in Hamilton, Ohio.

And we're back to my grandfather, my mother and me to round out our nine generations of this list.

Family #6 -- Ewing, Fink, Cookman

9. William aka Swago Bill Ewing was born in Bath County, Virginia in 1756. He married in 1783 in Greenbriar County, Virginia and died in 1822 in Ewington, Gallia County, Ohio.

8. William's son also named William was born in 1792 in Swago, Buckeye, Pocahontas County, Virginia. He married Sarah Mannering in 1818 in Gallia County, Ohio and died in 1847 in Ewington, Gallia County, Ohio.

7. William and Sarah had a son, also called William (wow my family likes that name, don't they?), born in 1823 in Ewington, Ohio -- the first Ewing born in Ohio. He married Mary White in 1847 in Gallia County, Ohio and died in 1899 in Weir City, Cherokee County, Kansas. I think I remember reading that he was visiting a daughter that had migrated west when he died.

7. Mary White was born in 1829 in Pennsylvania and died in 1890/92. She likely died in Ohio, as she is buried here.

6. William and Mary had a daughter named Annette. She was born in 1853 in Buckeye Furnace, Milton Township, Jackson County, Ohio. In 1872 she married John Fink in Jackson County, Ohio and she died in 1942 in Bloomfield, Ohio.

5. John and Annette had a son, William Golden (shocking another William), born in 1876 in Bloomfield, Ohio. He died in 1944 in Wellston, Ohio. He was the first Fink born in Ohio.

And once more, we meet people already enumerated above -- Homer, my grandfather, my mother and me.

Family #7 - Mannering, Ewing, Fink, Cookman

Remember Sarah Mannering? Well she was the daughter of Jordan Mannering and Elizabeth Clark...

9. Jordan Mascall Mannering was born in 1760 in Sussex in the Delaware Colony. He died in 1837 in Thurman, Ohio.

9. Elizabeth Clark was Jordan's wife. She was born in 1764 in Sussex County, Delaware and died in 1839 in Ohio.

8. Their daughter was Sarah Mannering. She was born in 1796 in Surrey County, North Carolina and died in 1877 in Hancock County, IL. Presumably, she lived in Ohio at some point considering that she was married in Ohio and had children born in Ohio as well.

Family #8 - Foy, Fink, Cookman

7. Nancy Foy was born about 1816 in Pennsylvania. She died after 1880 in Ohio.

7. Nancy was married to a man named Jacob Fink. He was born in East Brunswick, Schuykill, Pennsylvania in 1809. He died after 1880 in Knox, Ohio.

6. Their son John Franklin Fink was born in 1847 in Pennsylvania. He died in 192 in Bloomfield, Ohio.

Jacob and Nancy came to Ohio in the 1850s with John Franklin in tow. John's son William Golden is discussed above, all the way down to me.

Wow, my family has been in Ohio for a long, long time.

Find A Grave Website and Travel for Family Research

I get nothing from pimping their website, but findagrave.com is amazing. I found a ton of graves on my maternal grandfather's side today, including Jacob and Nancy (nee Foy) Fink who were the first of the Fink line to come to Ohio. They came from Pennsylvania in the 1850s. I don't even remember who all I found but I totally started a spreadsheet to keep track of where who is buried. I didn't have as much luck with my maternal grandmother's or my paternal grandfather's sides though. I'll probably have to give them another look. And I think Grandma Jenny's family needs more research. I have one or two lines traced really far back but most of them end pretty quickly. More research is necessary!

In other news, the reason why I'm doing all this burial research is because I want to travel around and take pictures of as many graves of my ancestors as I can. Right now, I'm just looking at Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. Then maybe later on I can look at Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia...you get the point. I would love to travel to New England at some point, especially to Plymouth.

My mom and I are already planning a trip to Jackson and Gallia counties for the Fink side. And we'll probably be heading down to the Powers reunion this summer so while we're down there, we might as well hit the Menifee and Bath county cemeteries....

I'm combining my love of travel with my family obsession. Awesome.

Tonight my mom was telling me about the old family homestead in Gallia. Apparently when great aunt Nora passed away, no one paid the taxes on the property and it ended up sold (for strip mining) for back taxes. How sad is that? I'm a little determined to find where the land was, maybe go take a picture while I'm over there. But land records (at least historical ones) are beyond my current research abilities. I may have to do some major research to even find out where to start looking. I tried tonight, but with no luck. I may contact the Gallia County Genealogical Society for help.

Matilda of Scotland

Matilda was born around 1080 in Dunfermline. She was the daughter of Malcolm III of Scotland and Saint Margaret. Matilda spent much of her life in a convent. Her original name was Edith but she became Matilda when she married Henry King of England in 1100. It was a good strong Norman name after all. Matilda was a very active queen and was even considered for sainthood. She died on 1 May 1118 at Westminster Palace and was buried at Westminster Abbey.

Malcolm’s Gaelic name was Máel Coluim mac Donnchada (Modern Gaelic: Maol Chaluim mac Dhonnchaidh,) He was nicknamed Canmore, "Big Head" and Long-neck. His second wife was Saint Margaret of Scotland, but Malcolm himself was not very pious. In 1034, Malcolm’s father Duncan I became king when Malcolm II, Duncan’s maternal grandfather died. Duncan was killed by Macbeth and his sons were sent away to safety. Malcolm was sent to England and likely spent most of Macbeth’s 17 year reign at the court of Edward the Confessor. Lulach, Macbeth’s stepson, succeeded him and Lulach was killed by Malcolm in 1058. And so Malcolm became king.

In 1068, he granted exile to English fleeing William I, among them Agatha, widow of Edward the Confessor’s nephew and her children Edgar and his sisters Margaret and Cristina. By the end of 1070, Malcolm had married Margaret. On 13 November 1093, Malcolm was killed at the Battle of Alnwick.

Malcolm and Ingebjorg had three sons – Duncan II of Scotland, Donald and Malcolm. With Margaret, he had eight children – Edward, Edmund of Scotland, Ethelred Abbot of Dunkeld, King Edgar of Scotland, King Alexander I of Scotland, King David I of Scotland, Edith of Scotland (aka Matilda) and Mary of Scotland.

Saint Margaret was the daughter of Edward the Exile, English prince and son of Edmund Ironside. She was born in Hungary, maybe at Castle Reka and raised in its court. Her father had settled there in his exile. She had two younger siblings, Edgar and Christina. At this time, the Hungarian court was a very religious environment. Margaret died on 16 November 1093, three days after the deaths of her husband and eldest son.

She was canonized by Pope Innocent IV in 1250 in recognition of her personal holiness, fidelity to the Church, work for religious reform and charity. After her cononisation, her remains were moved to Dunfermline Abbey. Her feast day is November 16, the day of her death. She is also a saint in the Anglican Church.

Eleanor of Aquitaine

Hmmm I don't really feel like stopping yet, let's take a look at Eleanor of Aquitaine, shall we? She was the daughter and oldest child of William X, Duke of Aquitaine and his wife, Aenor de Chatellerault. Aenor was the daughter of daughter of Aimeric I, Viscount of Châtellerault, and Dangereuse, William IX's longtime mistress as well as Eleanor's maternal grandmother. Dangereuse and her paternal grandfather, the Troubadour arranged the marriage of Eleanor's parents. In 1130, when Eleanor was eight, her brother and her mother died, leaving Eleanor as her father's heir.

When Eleanor was fifteen, her father entrusted his daughters to the Archbishop of Bordeaux and left on a pilgrimage, which he died during. Eleanor was now the Duchess of Aquitaine and the most eligible woman in Europe. William X's will appointed Louis VI of France as her guardian to protect her. When the news of William's death reached him, Louis decided that Eleanor would wed his heir. They wed on July 25, 1137 in Bordeaux. Louis was madly in love with his wife and granted her every whim. However, the couple grew apart and in 1152 after the birth of two daughters and no sons, their marriage was dissolved. The reason was consanguinity within the fourth degree, as they were third cousins. Their daughters were declared legitimate and Louis was given custody.

Six weeks after the dissolution of her marriage to Louis, Eleanor married Henry, Count of Anjou and Duke of Normandy. She was twelve years older than her new husband and they were more closely related than her and Louis. With their marriage, Eleanor became Duchess of the Normans and Countess of the Angevins, and Henry became Duke of Aquitaine and Count of Poitiers. In 1154, Henry became the King of England and Eleanor its queen. Their marriage was tumultuous to say the least and Henry had several illegitimate children. By the end of 1166, their marriage was permanently strained and it appears that a separation was agreed upon and she removed to Poitiers soon after.

In 1173, Eleanor and Henry's son, the younger Henry launched a revolt against his father. Eleanor ended up imprisoned by her husband for 16 years for her role in the revolt. Henry II died in 1189 and Eleanor was released by her custodians. Richard became king upon Henry's death and Eleanor ruled as his regent until he could get to England and then while he was on crusade. Eleanor outlived Richard and survived well into her son King John's reign. When she died in 1204, she had outlived all but King John and her daughter Eleanor, Queen of Castile.

Eleanor had ten children. With Louis - Marie, Countess of Champagne. She married Henry I Count of Champagne and had issue. Alix, Countess of Blois, married Theobald V Count of Blois and had issue. With Henry --William IX Count of Poitiers who never married and had no issue. Henry the Young King who married Margaret of France but had no surviving issue. Matilda Duchess of Saxony who married Henry the Lion Duke of Saxony and had issue. Richard I of England who married Berengaria of Navarre and had one illegitimate son. Geoffrey II Duke of Brittany who married Constance Duchess of Brittany and had issue. Eleanor Queen of Castile who maried Alfonso VIII of Castile and had issue. Joan Queen of Sicily who first married William II of Sicily then wed Raymond VI of Toulouse and she had issue. And finally John of England who first married Isabella Countess of Gloucester and then wed Isabella Countess of Angouleme and he had issue.

She might not have been the nicest woman in the world, but doesn't it look like Eleanor led a fascinating life? Now...on to Matilda of Scotland!

Descended from William the Conqueror

Let's see how far we can go back...As we've already seen, King John was the son of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II was the son of Geoffrey V “Le Bon” Plantagenet and Matilda (Maud) Empress of Germany.

Empress Matilda (1102-1167) was the daughter of Henry I and Matilda of Scotland (1080-1118). Henry I was the son of William I and Matilda of Flanders. He was born in September of 1068 at Selby, Yorkshire, a mere two years after the Norman Invasion. Henry I ascended to the throne on August 3, 1100 aged 31 years and was crowned on August 6, 1100 at Westminster Abbey. He married twice (1) Matilda (Edith), Daughter of Malcolm III and (2): Adelicia, Daughter of Geoffrey VII, count of Louvain. He died on December 2, 1135 at St Denis le Fermont, aged 67 years, 2 months, and 29 days and was buried at Reading.

William I (also known as William The Conqueror) was the illegitimate son of Robert I, Duke of Normandy and Arlette (Herleva) daughter of Fulbert. Despite his illegitimatcy, his father made him his heir. He was born on September 1028 at Falaise, Normandy. He ascended to the throne of England and was crowned on December 25, 1066 aged 38 years at Westminster Abbey. He married Matilda, Daughter of Count of Flanders (1031-1083). He died on September 9, 1087 at Rouen, France, aged 59 years, and 7 days and was buried at St Stephens Abbey, Caen, Normandy.

Robert I, Duke of Normandy (1000 to 1035) was the son of Richard II Duke of Normandy. Richard II (963-1027) was the son of Richard I Duke of Normandy (933-996). Richard I's daughter Emma of Normandy married King Aethelred II The Unready of England and her son was Edward the Confessor, King of England. His son Harold was the last Anglo-Saxon king of England who was defeated by William I at the Battle of Hastings.

So we're descended from William the Conqueror. That's pretty cool. I've also hit Normandy a lot in my research into other branches of the family. There's usually an ancestor born in Normandy before 1066, then the next birth is in England. So we likely had a lot of ancestors that were part of the Norman Invasion.

Descended from the Plantagenets

Last night, my mom was reading my blog and noticed that both her and my father are descended from the Plantagenet royal line of England. She pointed out that they are both descended from women named Joan - one is Joan Plantagenet of Acre (my mother's side) and the other is Joan Plantagenet-Cornwall (my father's side). For more info, please see Royalty Post #1 - The Forkners and Royalty Post #2 - The Lyons.

Looking at their information in my blog posts and looking at a Plantagenet family tree online, I've come to realize that the Joans were basically cousins. This blog post is going to trace each of their lines back to find their common ancestor.

Joan Plantagenet-Cornwall was the daughter of Richard Plantagenet-Cornwall and Joan Fitzalan. Richard's parents were Richard, Prince of England and Sancha / Sanchia, Countess of Provence. Richard, Prince of England was the son of King John of England and Isabella of Angouleme. King John was the son of Henry II “Plantagenet” King of England and Eleanore of Aquitaine. Henry II was the son of Geoffrey V “Le Bon” Plantagenet and Matilda (Maud) Empress of Germany. Henry II and John are technically the House of Angevin, not Plantagenet.

As a side note, I've always had this fascination with Eleanor of Aquitaine. I read a biography about her in school once, many years ago, and she captivated me. It's interesting and amazing to learn that I'm descended from her.

Joan Plantagenet of Acre was the daughter of EDWARD I "Longshanks" PLANTAGENET (King of England) and Leonor of Castilla (Countess Ponthieu).

Edward I Longshanks was the son of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. He was born June 17, 1239 at Westminster and Ascended to the throne on November 20, 1272 aged 33 years. He was crowned on August 19, 1274 at Westminster Abbey. He married twice, first to Eleanor, Daughter of Ferdinand III of Castile Margaret and secondly to Margaret, Daughter of Philip III of France. He had six sons including Edward II,and twelve daughters. He died on July 7, 1307 at Burgh-by-Sands, Nr Carlisle, Cumbria, aged 68 years, and 19 days and was buried at Westminster Abbey.

Henry III was the son of King John and Isabella of Angouleme. He was born onOctober 1, 1207 at Winchester and ascended to the throne on October 18, 1216 aged 9 years. He was crowned on October 28, 1216 at Westminster Abbey. He married Eleanor of Provence, Daughter of Raymond Berenger and had six sons including Edward I, and three daughters. He died on November 16, 1272 at Westminster, aged 65 years, 1 month, and 16 days and was buried at Westminster Abbey.

So King John of England was the father of Henry III and of Richard. Joan Plantagenet-Cornwall was the great granddaughter of King John through his son Richard and Joan Plantagenet of Acre was his great granddaughter through Henry III. So the Joans were second cousins.

My parents are both descended from King John of England and more importantly to me at least, from Eleanor of Aquitaine.

Pioneers I - the Hollingsworths

One of my favorite discoveries is that one of my ancestors - Elizabeth Curtis, my fifth great grandmother, was the first white woman in Madison County, Indiana.

My paternal grandmother is Kathleen Frances Forkner, daughter of Harriet Letitia Clifford and Samuel Ray Forkner. Harriet was Born on 7 Dec 1898 in Anderson Indiana, and married on 21 Aug 1918 in Anderson Indiana. She was the daughter of Hadley Watson Clifford and Daisy Leota Hollingsworth.

Daisy Leota Hollingsworth was Born on 30 Nov 1873 and died on 2 Oct 1940 in Anderson IN. She was the Daughter of George Washington Hollingsworth and Mary Ellen Farmer.

George Washington Hollingsworth was Born on 3 Apr 1843 in Anderson IN, married on 20 Aug 1858 and Died on 25 Dec 1891 in Madison Co IN (my great Uncle Dick says 25 Jan 1890 in his research). George Washington Resided in Anderson IN and was the Son of James Hollingsworth and Mary Elizabeth Shinkle.

James Hollingsworth was Born on 14 Sept 1815 in Springfield Clark Co Ohio and Married on 19 March 1836 in Fall Creek Madison Co IN. He Died on 24 July 1902 in Lafayette Twp Tippacanoe Co IN. He was the Son of Elias Hollingsworth and Elizabeth Curtis.

Elias Hollingsworth was Born on 7 July 1794 in Fish Dam Twp Old 96^th Dist Union Co SC, Married in 1814 in Clark Co Ohio and Died 21 Jan 1846 in Osage Co MO. He was the son of Benjamin Hollingsworth and Phoebe or Phebe Posey.

Elizabeth Curtis was Born on 19 Nov 1795 in Harrison Co VA and Died on 13 Apr 1849 Lafayette Tippecanoe Co IN / Richland Twp Madison Co IN. She was Buried in April of 1849 in Nelson Cemetery, Madison County, Indiana. The website sited below puts her death in 1853 and says she is buried in an unmarked grave somewhere in Richland Township.

Elias and Elizabeth had 11 children: James, Phoebe (who died at the age of 15), Benjamin, Elias Pierce, Elizabeth, William Flacher, Mary (who died in her early 20s), Leonard, Frances Minerva, Susannah and Absalom. They came to Madison County around 1819. Unlike the other settlers wives, Elizabeth went with Elias on his first trip to the area, making her the first white woman in Madison County, Indiana. Their son James who was around 4 or 5 years old at the time, also made the trip. Furthermore, the family also had the first white child born in the township - Elias Pierce in November of 1820.

In 1836, James moved with his mother Elizabeth from Fall Creek Township to what would become Lafayette Township. James built a factory and organized the settlers so they could form their own township. Elizabeth also made a difference -- she organized the first Sabbath school and worked as a midwife. James served the area as a township trustee and justice of the peace and in 1837, he and Elizabeth Shinkle were the first couple to marry within the new township's boundaries.

So my family helped settle two townships, and held the distinctions of being the first white woman in the county, the first white child born in the county and the first couple married within a new township. Not too shabby.

For more information, visit --

http://www.cemeteries-madison-co-in.com/fallcreek_twp.htm

and

http://www.cemeteries-madison-co-in.com/lafeyette_twp.htm