I have researched literally hundreds of families on Ancestry.com, I have come to expect that couples usually are of a similar age. Not so for Elmer and Elva! Elmer married his much younger second wife in 1915. Together, they became the direct ancestors to my friend Joan Miller.

Elmer Ellsworth Walsh was born on May 17, 1862, in Kirkwood, Illinois. His second wife Elva Loretta Sopha was born on March 11, 1895, in Elmer, Michigan.

I will do the math. Elma (the bride) was 20 years old when she wed Elmer. Elmer (the groom) was 53 when he married her.

Elmer had previously wed a woman named Lucy Chalker. They were divorced in 1915 (yes, if you are checking, the same year he married Elva!) As an interesting note, his first marriage ended because of “extreme and repeated cruelty.”

Elbert and Elva’s were the direct ancestors to Dorothy Walsh (the paternal grandmother of Joan Miller.) Elbert was 55 years old when Dorothy Walsh was born. Elva was only 22 years old.

Are you ready for this story to totally turn your head? There is another record that shows that Elmer and Elva did not marry until 1921. What???? If that is true, then they were NOT married at the time that Elva birthed her twin daughters Dorothy Walsh and Doris Walsh in 1917. (A genealogy question!) More information is needed to solve this big mystery!

Here is the web site for Elmer Walsh’s grave (includes his obituary) https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=60525&h=9922020&ssrc=pt&tid=161744436&pid=202108405174&usePUB=true

Here is the death certificate for Elmer Walsh:

William H Capps was born on February 28, 1916, in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, the son of Hazel Holbrook Capps and Percy Capps. He had two sons and one daughter with Dorothy G Walsh between 1936 and 1941. He died on February 8, 1989, in Port Huron, Michigan, at the age of 72, and was buried there.

In the Canadian 1921 census, William was only 5 years old. He was living with his parents in the Lambton West district of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.

At the time of the US census in 1930, William was 14 years old and living at home on Forest Street in Port Huron, MI. The 1930 census states that both of his parents were born in Canada. They immigrated in 1926 to the USA. William is listed with a US citizenship status of “alien.”

The image below is from 6 July 1926 -immigration to Port Huron Michigan. Note that his race is “Irish.” (note that at this time, the notation that he was of an Irish race may simply mean that he was not native born American.)

In that same 1930 census, Percy (William’s father) states that his occupation is “kiln-hand.” at a brass factory. Percy also says that his parents were both born in England.

By the time of the US 1940 census, William was 24 years old and is a naturalized US citizen. He lists his highest education level as completion of High School. He is employed as an inspector in a parts factory. He is living with his wife and sons at 2620 Armour, Port Huron, MI.

In 1941, William Harold Capps enlisted in the Army on July 25, 1941, during World War II. He was 25 years old.

Sadly, in 1953, his 12 year old daughter Carole Dorothy Capps, passed away.

Here is how William Harold Capps connects:

When Gugllielmo “William” Bivona was born on November 9, 1900, in Partanna, Trapani, Sicilia, Italy, his father, Vincenzo, was 26 and his mother, Anna Cappadoro Bivona, was 22. He married Calogera “Lillie” Triolo on February 23, 1927, in New York City, New York. They had one child during their marriage. He died on August 12, 1981, in Woodhavens, Queens, New York, at the age of 80. (William claims two places of birth in various US government records…described later in this blog… he may have actually been born in Argentina.)

The english translation for Gugllielmo is William.

William was the second born child. He had an older brother named Giuseppe “Joseph” Bivona who was born sometime around 1899.

When William was 4 years old his brother Francesco “Frank” Bivona was born. It was this brother, Frank, who was the maternal grandfather to my brother-in-law. So, William’s relation to our family is a Great Uncle to my brother-in-law.

In the 1920 US Census, William is 19 years old. He is living in New York on Manhattan Avenue in Brooklyn Assembly District 13, Kings, New York. The census records that he can speak English, but his native tongue is Italian. At the time of this census he is single and occupied as a dyer in a silk factory. (The census takers at this time were not too careful with spelling…he is listed as part of the Bevona family.)

Could history ever give us a break on facts? In the 1920 census, William states that he was born in Argentina. Later, in 1927, he will apply for naturalization and will claim that he was born in Italy.

I am guessing that William was an Italian citizen, but may have been born in Argentina. I know that the Italian family did live for some period of time in Argentina. That might be why William claimed in the 1920 census that he was born in Argentina but in 1927 filled out forms for naturalization stating that he was born in Italy.

In 1930, the US census taker is again careless with his name. He is now listed as William Bevone. I have learned that census takers just wrote down what they heard without always verifying the spelling of names.

In this document, he again lists his birthplace as Argentina. He must have been trilingual. Earlier, he stated that he could speak English but his native tongue was Italian. Now, he claims he speaks the official language of Argentina which is Spanish.

In this 1940 US census, William is 39 years old. He is occupied as a chauffeur. Again, census takers gave little importance to the spelling of names. He is listed as William Bevana. Really?

The only child of William and Lillie was Vincent Joseph Bivona who was a 1st cousin 1x removed to my brother-in-law.

Family Search is a free website for genealogy. The ID # for William is GWLV-T75.

When Margaret “Maggie” Darlines Kelley was born on February 18, 1851, in South Carolina, her father, William Henry Kelley, was 35, and her mother, Elizabeth Ann Taylor Kelley, was 26. She married Simeon Scarborough Barnes in 1875. They had eight children in 22 years. She died on January 18, 1933, in Fitzgerald, Georgia, at the age of 81, and was buried there.

The first resource materials that I found on Maggie were the 1860 and 1870 US census records. At the time of these census takings, Maggie was living with her birth family in Sumter County, South Carolina (the Bishopville Post Office). Her father was a farmer.

I believe that she married Simeon Scarborough Barnes in 1875 at the age of 24.

Usually, math works…right? Well, I have a math problem! The first child of Maggie, a son named Wilson Scarborough Barnes, was born on 31 August 1876 when Maggie was 25 years old. But her next child, also a son, Samuel Tilden Barnes, was born on 6 February 1877. It was this son (Samuel Tilden) who was the direct ancestor to my brother-in-law.

Can you see how very little time there would have been between the births of the 1st two sons? The math is wrong it would be too fast to get pregnant, give birth and have a child that premature that would be able to survive. My head started spinning. Have we got Samuel Tilden Barnes in the right family? (Note: There are only 159 days between the dates of birth. The dates from Ancestry mean that Samuel would have been born 5 months and 6 days after the birth of his brother- NOT POSSIBLE) So…what? Where to now? Were Simeon and Maggie really the parents of Samuel Tilden Barnes (my brother-in-law’s direct ancestor?) Back to the research materials…

It was helpful to see the 1880 US Census. Here, our Samuel Tilden (Chris’ great grandfather) is listed simply as “Tildon”. Note that Wilson and Tildon are listed as the children of Maggie in this census. So, this is good for the case that they were brothers…right? If they were brothers, how amazing that they are only 5 months apart! Is that possible?

I started to wonder about pre-mature births in the 1870’s. I found this link: https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=575478.0 The comment that stood out was, “In 1876 there would not have been anything that could be done for a baby born too early, or with any significant problem.  They either survived or they didn’t, and the mother and her female supporters just did their best.” 

The next research I did was on grave markers and burial locations. Simeon Scarborough Barnes and Margaret Kelley are buried in Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Georgia, United States of America. The oldest son, Wilson, and several other children of the couple are also buried there… but NOT the direct ancestor to our family Samuel Tilden Barnes. Arrrghhhh… If Samuel was their son, why isn’t he buried with the rest of his family?

OK, back to census records and I hit a brick wall. In the 1900 US Census. Samuel Tilden Barnes in missing from the record!!! So…was he NOT the son of Simeon and Maggie? If so, then why was he listed in the 1880 census? Samuel Tilden would only have been a teenager and should be living with his family! Or, are they his family? Why was he in the 1880 census and not the 1900 census?

Here is another look at the troubling census of 1900. (The S.S. Barnes below would be Simeon Scarborough Barnes who I am starting to think is not the father of Samuel Barnes after all.) Again, the older brother Wilson is listed, but not our Samuel Tilden!

Stick with me here while I continue to unravel the mystery.

In a lawsuit filed after the death of Samuel Tilden Barnes, it states that Simeon Scarborough Barnes and Maggie were “next of kin”. Well, that means Samuel was related to them…but not necessarily their child. Right? The lawsuit is very tangled, but all of the right relative names are listed so … somehow, Samuel was “in the family” even though he is removed from many census forms and the math does not work for his birth date. He belongs with this family in some format, but could clearly NOT have been a biological son to Maggie. Oh dear!

Here is the link to Samuel Tildon Barnes’ grave site: Pay attention to the dates. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/67177080

Here is the link to his older brother Wilson Barnes’ grave site (again- note their births are too close together to be biological brothers from the same mother) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/52577889

In conclusion, here are my questions (if I can’t have answers, I can have questions)…

Was Samuel’s father Simeon Scarborough? If so, that means that Simeon had an affair with someone during his marriage.

Was Samuel a super premature birth?

Was he brought into the family? Here is one interesting clue from the Ancestry web site- see photo… (This would be VERY interesting!…Hard to trace) The Cherokee nation? Wow! (Oh, and the child listed below is not grouped with any parents???)

Or, my final guess. Was he actually the child of Simeon’s sister Margaret who died at about the time of Samuel’s birth? Margaret may not have been married so “giving” her son to her brother and sister-in-law may have been necessary. There are no birth records listing Simeon’s sister as a mother.

When Archibald Campbell, 10th Earl, 2nd Duke of Argyll
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archibald_Campbell,_1st_Duke_of_Argyll was born on July 25, 1658, in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, his father, Archibald VI Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archibald_Campbell,_9th_Earl_of_Argyll ,was 29 and his mother, Lady Mary Stuart, Countess of Moray, was 29.

He married Elizabeth Tollemache Campbell, Countess Argyll and Lady Lorne on March 12, 1677, in Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland. They had 14 children in 62 years. He died on September 25, 1703, in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England, at the age of 45.

Here is how he connects to my brother-in-law’s family:

When Rufus Robert Runke was born on February 10, 1889, in Ahnapee, Wisconsin, his father, Heinrich, was 36 and his mother, Wilhelmina “Minnie” Bruemmer Runke, was 31. He had seven brothers and eight sisters. He died on November 1, 1969 in Algoma, Wisconsin, at the age of 79. Rufus was 9th in the birth order of the Runke siblings. Our direct ancestor Alma Runke was 4th in birth order.

Rufus was married first to Ruth Elida Vollmer but after her death in July of 1932 he remarried to Myrtle Mae Hyde (the widow of William Esser Perry ) in 1936 when he was at the age of 47.

Here is how we connect: Rufus Runke was a brother of my son-in-law’s great grandmother, Alma Runke Schmiling. This means that Rufus Runke was a 2nd great uncle of Drew.

When Margaret Malvina Meeks was born on February 16, 1828, in Conecuh, Alabama, her father, Wiley, was 34, and her mother, Sarah Carroll, was 31.

Margaret Malvina married Robert King Thompson on December 6, 1846, in Mississippi. They had 13 children in 22 years. She died on March 5, 1896, in New Hebron, Mississippi, at the age of 68, and was buried there.

Here is a link to family information on find-a-grave: https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=60525&h=92144861&ssrc=pt&tid=10440983&pid=352010940262&usePUB=true

This photo was shared on Ancestry website:

Margaret Malvina’s husband was Robert King Thompson (the 2nd great grandfather of my brother-in-law). Here is information that I found on line about the farm that Robert owned. (In all of the US census records I could find, he listed his occupation as farmer.)

Robert King Thompson “Born August 23, 1818 – Died March 28, 1898” Burial: Bethel Church Cemetery, rural Lawrence County, Mississippi. Bethel Church was the family’s “home church” for several decades. The church is still standing in excellent condition and is the gathering place for the annual Thompson family reunion.

“Pursuant to the Act of Congress on the 20th day of May, 1862, To secure Homesteads to actual letters on the Public Domain,” and the acts supplemental thereto, the claim of Robert King Thompson has been established and duly consummated in conformity to law, for the West half of the South East quarter of Section two, in Township eight North of Range twenty West, the the District of Lands, subject to sale at Jackson, Mississippi containing one hundred and fifty Acres and Sixty hundredths of an acre. (Excess paid as per receipt No. 2620 1/2) according to the Official Plat of the Survey of the said Land, returned to the General Land Office by the Surveyor General: according to the official plat of the Survey of the said Land, returned to the General Land Office by the Surveyor General: Now knew ye, That there is, therefore, granted by the United States unto the said Robert K. Thompson the tract of Land above described: To have and to hold the said tract of land, with the appurtenances thereof, unto the said Robert King Thompson and to his heirs and assigns forever. In testimony where whereof, I, Ulysses S. Grant, president of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, and the Seal of the General Land Office to be hereunto affixed. Given under my hand, at the City of Washington, the twentieth day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and seventy five, and the Independance of the United States the one hundredth. BY THE PRESIDENT: U. S. Grant

Recorded, Vol. 1, Page 427

Some interesting dates:

Margaret was only 18 years old when she got married.

Margaret would have been 32 years old and living in Mississippi during the Civil War.