Data: Adams vital records, Stamford, from Barbour collection

The only known connection in these records is Ann m David Duncan (corrected from Dunian). 

ADAMS, ADDAMS 
Abraham m. Sally Waterbury, Mar. 9, 1805, by Rev. Daniel Smith 
Ann m. David Dunian, Dec. 31, 1844, by Rev. Peter C. Oakley SHOULD BE DUNCAN pl
Anne, d. Reuben & Hannah, b. July 6, 1797 
Benjamin M. m. Amanda M. Lockwood, Nov. 2, 1846, by Rev. Aaron Rogers 
Benjamin Matthias, s. Sands & Phebe Ann, b. Apr. 11, 1824 
Cornelia, d. Abraham & Sally, b. Dec. 28, 1810 
Ebenezer m. Elizabeth Matthias, Dec. 29, 1792, by Rev. Ebenezer Dibble 
Eliza Ann, d. Abraham & Sally, b. Oct. 19, 1806 
Frances, child of Abraham & Sally, b. Apr. 15, 1815 
George W., s. Abraham & Sally, b. Sept. 15, 1820 
Hawley m. Emily C. McDonald, b. of Stamford, Jan. 26, 1845, by Rev. P.C. Oakley 
Henry Holly, s. Reuben & Hannah, b. Aug. 16, 1803 
John, s. Reuben & Hannah, b. Feb. 18, 1810 
John, of Greenwich, m. Elizabeth Husted, of Stamford, Sept. 1717?, by Capt. Joseph Bishop, J.P. 
John Williams, s. Abraham & Sally, b. Aug. 12, 1817 
Maria, d. Abraham & Sally, b. Feb. 29, 1808 
Maria m. Nathaniel T. Palmer, Dec. 24, 1827, by Rev. Daniel Smith 
Morehouse, s. Ebenezer & Elizabeth, b. May 19, 1795 
Reuben m. Hannah Mead, Sept. 29, 1795, by Charles Webb 
Sands, s. Ebenezer & Elizabeth, b. Feb. 18, 1798 
Sands m. Phebe Ann Matthias, b. of Stamford, Mar. 3, 1823, by Rev. John Jarvis Matthias 
Sarah, of Greenwich, m. William Gray, of Stamford, Apr. 16, 1843, by Rev. Addison Parker 
Sarah Ann Dibble, d. Reuben & Hannah, b. Dec. 13, 1800 
Sarah E. m. Charles S. Riblet, b. of Stamford, Dec. 27, 1848, by Rev. H. F. Pease 
Sarah Elizabeth, d. Abraham & Sally, b. Feb. 28, 1813 
William Henry, s. Ebenezer & Elizabeth, b. Feb. 26, 1801 
William Jarvis, s. Sands & Phebe Ann, b. Oct. 2, 1825

Data: Stottler parents

I found these, separate from the Stottler graves in Woodland cemetery. They are lying in the St. John's and St. Andrew's cemetery, Stamford:

Stottler, John, born in Germany, died Feb. 26, 1857, age 53 yrs. 25 days.

Stottler, Catherine J., wife of John, born 1811, died Jan. 19, 1895, age 83 yrs

These are the parents of John Stottler or Stottlar who married Mary Jane Adams. John is listed here as having been born in Germany, but our understanding from the family is that he was born in Marseilles, France. Catherine was born in Germany. They married in New York and moved in stages to Stamford. 

I will post more of the story as time allows. Or perhaps one of our Stottler descendants would be so kind as to write it up...?

Story: Finding Elizabeth Tanner...

Tonight I was going through cemetery records from Stamford CT. They are posted online, and there are many of them, and while I was on duty on the floor I scrolled through them. (It was a quiet night.)

I was looking through maybe the 20th cemetery on the list, scrolling as fast as I could read until I saw a family name. At that point I would stop and assess it. When I saw 'Tanner' I did the same thing, and that's how I saw Elizabeth.

Ida May Tanner (granddaughter of Elizabeth) married Christopher Joseph Adams in 1905, to give a point of reference.

Elizabeth's story is quite interesting, but for tonight I am just going to tell you about this discovery.

The inscription read: Elizabeth Tanner d 26 Jan 1880 at age 73. That's it. 

But then I saw next to her the inscription for Charles W Tanner. That was her husband, well-known from previous discoveries.

The problem was that he was listed as having died in 1831. Charles was only a few years old then. 

That was a copying error. I know that because about a month ago I found that Charles Wilcox Tanner, born Calne Wiltshire (England), died in February 1881. (This was where Elizabeth's husband Charles Wilcox Tanner was known to be born, so there's no question it was he.) I can easily see how the 8 and 3 were confused on an aging tombstone.

At the time that I found Charles Wilcox Tanner's death record in the Greenwich CT vital records, on a microfilm, there was no sign of Elizabeth.

I hadn't known they were in Greenwich, and when I first found Charles I had no way of knowing that Elizabeth had lived with him there. She could have died much earlier and perhaps he had moved since.

Elizabeth was at least 15, maybe 18 years older than Charles when they married: he was 19 or 20, she was a widow with 5 children, both living in Calne.

So the idea that she might have predeceased him by many years was perfectly reasonable. I just didn't know.

But now I do. Charles died a year after Elizabeth. He was still a young man, 53 or 54 years old. And they both died in...

Well, that was another puzzle. I was looking at Stamford cemeteries, and Charles Wilcox Tanner died in Greenwich. However, a quick Google search let me know that Roxbury, where the cemetery was, was very close to Stamford but in Greenwich.

So now the final chapter is written about Elizabeth, and I am delighted to have stumbled upon this fact tonight.

Photo: Lorenzo Jackson Adams, from M Brett

This is a photo of Lorenzo Jackson Adams from Mary Brett. He is our mutual great grandfather.

He was a policeman. This photo was taken in 1913 in Norwalk, CT.

I am hoping to get some assistance in cleaning up his individual image so we can have more of an idea what he looked like. Thanks, Mary

Data: Cemetery record for Rufus Adams and family

This is the cemetery card that shows Rufus and Sarah Douglas Adams, David and Anne (Adams) Duncan, Addie Duncan, and an unknown. It is also at the Adams Family Tree. (Is everyone able to access that?) Let me know if you'd like a copy by email.

Memory: Fires, alarms, trucks. and a chief

One of the most consistent memories I have from my childhood is that of fire alarms. We lived in Darien, which had only a volunteer fire department, and three fire stations. We learned from an early age to run for the little red book that would decode the alarms, and we could tell which of the three stations the call was coming from just by listening to the whistle. As non-firefighters we weren't supposed to have the little red book, but my father (Christopher Adelbert Adams) had coerced a young fellow he knew to give it to him...

But the first fire I really remember happened much earlier. It was before my sister was born, so no later than Spring 1946. I was 3, maybe less, depending on when it was. I was awakened in the middle of the night and taken with my parents to a barn fire. It was huge, horrible, scary - especially when my father told me not to stand on the big hose, and I was afraid I might by mistake. He told me there had been animals in the barn...

I was interested when I later found out that my grandfather Christopher Joseph Adams was supposedly killed when the firetruck he was on as tillerman turned over. His death certificate mentions a car, not a firetruck, so I wonder. Does anyone know this story? I'd love to learn more. I could picture him chasing the firetruck, but it's hard for me to imagine their family having a car. Much to learn here! It must be in the Norwalk newspaper...

Another incident related to a fire concerned my father when he was about 6 and living in Norwalk. He had gone to first grade, then was immediately promoted to second. He went to second for a few days, then walked home sick. They knew he was very sick because a major fire was happening in Norwalk near where he was walking and he didn't even try to go see it, he just shuffled home. He was in bed for a year because he had rheumatic fever. This would have been about 1914. Does anyone know about a big fire in Norwalk in the Fall of 1914?

The final fire-related memory is that Lorenzo Jackson Adams, my ggrandfather, was a fire chief. I used to have a portrait of him in his uniform, but someone who was staying at my mother's house must have thrown it away. That's all I know about him, just about. The photo was taken in Norwalk. Does anyone have a photo of him? I'd love to get a copy and see it posted on the Adams Family Tree. I wonder if the old negatives are available at some photographer's still?

Please share your memories of your related loved ones on these pages. We'll all enjoy them. Comments welcome.

Query: Hattie's death certificate

One loose end pertaining to Harriett or Hattie A Leonard is to show conclusively that she was Harriett Adams. All evidence points to it, but we don't know for sure, as Karen has pointed out.

Harriett Adams married in New York State and didn't have children. A very good candidate for her husband is John Leonard. 

If we can find the death certificate for Hattie A Leonard, we will learn the name of her parents. We believe they were Alfred A Adams and Jane Scott. 

Can anyone help with this? Hattie A Leonard died in Rye NY in 1914, was born in 1847 in Stamford CT. She was buried in the Union cemetery in Rye, and her tombstone says her years were 1850-1914. She is buried next to John Leonard. We need to find out if she was born Hattie Adams.

Data: Mini-tree on Marshalls

Today I discovered the pedigree of Gilbert Marshall in a book called Epitaphs of Rye, Westchester County, NY. It was apparently on his tombstone, or possibly the author had another source. 

I didn't want to lose track of it, in case this turns out to be the family of Sarah Marshall, wife of Elijah Scott. It is possible Gilbert's father is Sarah's brother.

So I decided to use Ancestry's family tree function to 'store' it. If you want to see it, it's at ancestry.com under Marshall Family Tree per Greenwood-Union Cemetery . It is not perfect: Hannah Lockwood's dates or else her position in the family are wrong. 

Query: need a Rosetta Stone for the Scotts

Here are some basic things we know. Karen and others, please add the things I've left out:

Hannah Scott married Alfred Adams on 10 Jul 1834 in Greenwich. They went on to have Augustus A, Mary Jane (became Stottler), and two boys who died very young. Hannah died on 3 Dec 1842 and shortly thereafter Alfred married her sister Jane; they had Harriett and George.

Lewis Scott married Eliza Clark on the same day as Hannah in the same place with the same preacher. In fact, the original of their marriage certificate includes both couples on the same document. Eliza Clark died a year later and Lewis married Julia Ann Denton in Greenwich in 1837.

Lewis Scott bought land in Greenwich in late 1833, and his brother William did the same shortly thereafter. Lewis was a painter.

Lewis and William were born in Peekskill New York to Elijah Scott and Sarah (possibly Marshall), based on their death certificates.

By 1840 Elijah and Sarah had moved to Greenwich and were living on William's land, possibly in William's home.

William married Mary (?) Mead later. William was a boatman, later owned his own sloop.

Census records for 1810 show Elijah with a wife (judging from her age) and 2 daughters under 10.

Census records for 1820 show Elijah with a wife (judging from her age), 1 girl b before 1810, and 2 boys and 2 girls b 1810-1820.

The boy is William. Lewis has apparently been farmed out, or apprenticed: he was about 9. We know he was a member of this household from his death certificate, we just don't know where he is at the moment. The younger girls are the right ages to be Hannah and Jane. We don't know who the oldest girl is, nor do we know what happened to the other girl who was in the 1810 census.

What we need is to verify that Hannah and Jane were these two girls. We would also like to know who the older girls were. 

For now it seems the overwhelming proponderance of evidence suggests that Elijah and Sarah were the parents of Hannah and Jane. But we don't know. Death certificates would help. 

There are other circumstantial pieces of evidence, but we need a Rosetta Stone tying them all together.

Or do you think the wedding on the same day is such a link? 

I should also mention that the Stottlers have in their family lore a story that Alfred's marriage to Hannah's sister Jane was prearranged. The fact that Alfred married first a Hannah Scott and then a Jane Scott, and that Elijah has two daughters of the right age is highly suggestive. Is it enough?

In 1830, the census for Peekskill (under Cortlandt, Westchester Co) NY shows Elijah and wife with a dau 5-10 and another 10-15. The latter is certainly Jane (if Elijah was her father), and we don't know who the other one was. Hannah (in this scenario) was somewhere else, age about 17, and not to be married for 4 years. Possibly farmed out.

According to church records in Stamford, Jane Scott became a member of that church in 1840, suggesting she had moved to Stamford. Hannah and Alfred were living in Stamford from at least 1838, and were there at the time of Hannah's death in late 1842 and Jane's marriage to Alfred in early 1843. We do not have any documentation that states that Jane who married Alfred was a Scott, but family lore suggests that was the case.

Summary: 

We know that Elijah and Sarah were the parents of Lewis and William (from death certs). 

We know that Elijah and Sarah moved to Greenwich after 1830 and before 1840, and lived at William's.

We know Lewis bought land in 1833 and William in 1834 in Greenwich.

We know Lewis and Hannah were married at the same time as each other in July 1834 in Greenwich.

We know that Elijah and Sarah had children the same ages as Lewis, William, Sarah, and Jane, and had three other daughters we don't know by name.

See the Adams Family Tree for documents.

What do you think? Please comment!

Analysis: A Rosetta Stone related to Rufus

Thanks, Mary, for reminding me we needed this piece of the story too. The excitement here is that:

1. The known dau of Rufus Adams and Sarah Douglas, named Sarah E Adams, is known to have married Samuel Shaw Bent.

2. The known dau of Alfred Adams and Jane Scott, named Harriett or Hattie Adams, is now seen to be living with Samuel Bent and his wife Sarah.

(If you look at the census records for 1860, there are some errors: Sarah is listed as Susan, and Hattie as being 18. Hattie was born in 1847 and is 13. We see these sorts of errors on the part of census takers all the time. The verification of the facts we are presenting here can be found in the 1870 census, when Sarah is the name of Samuel's wife, and Harriett is now 23 as she ought to be.)

So Alfred's dau was living with Alfred's sister after the death of her mother in about 1856. That ties the families together beyond any doubt.

Here's my message to Karen on March 18. 

"Back a week ago, a long time ago, when I found a Hattie Adams living in Rye, you said she might be there with some family, and I was thinking how Augustus was there, or at least in Port Chester. Hattie was the dau of Alfred and second wife Jane....

I just came across my note. It says: "Hattie Adams living Rye NY @23 1870 census b CT  living w/ family of Samuel Bent @ 38. No occupation. 2 servants in household. So Hattie was living with Rufus's daughter Sarah E Bent. 

That clinches it. She is not a servant, but living as an unwed female member of the family. 

Time to look around in Rye some more! "

So Sarah is our Rosetta Stone: on the one hand, she has a known relationship to Rufus Adams: she is his daughter. And on the other hand she has a known relationship to Hattie Adams: Hattie lives in her house and is the right age as the known Hattie Adams, dau of Alfred. Therefore Alfred is related to Sarah, and since we know Sarah had a brother of Alfred's age from the 1840 census, we can conclude that Alfred is the son of Rufus and Sarah.

Irish research helps

When we were first here in Salt Lake, we went to a course in Irish research given by the Family History library (FHL). 

It was 6 hours long, though we didn't discover it until half way through. 

We came away with a thick packet of materials for doing Irish research. 

In the FHL a whole floor is devoted to British research, including Irish. 

With about 3/4 of my ancestors being Irish, I have planned to spend a half year of our year her learning how to approach these records. It's considered to be among the most challenging research in the world. That half year begins this summer.

If anyone would like a copy to Irish research, I will send you the document. 

And meanwhile please post all the information you have about your Irish roots. There's no point in spending that precious six months on things we collectively already know!

Searches: Was Adelia an Adams?

Adelia A Studwell is a widow in 1850. In fact, searching for Studwell, no first name, in Greenwich in 1850 yields only women, whereas in 1840 there are many households. Many of them don't have women of the right age to be Adelia, but George, Henry, Richard, and possibly Solomon do. The household she was in at that time can't be narrowed down with this information.

It's interesting that many of them live very near to Elijah Scott, father of Alfred's wife Hannah.

Did a young female Adams marry a Studwell before 1850? Or was she Adelia with some other maiden name beginning with A? There are about 12 candidates in the Greenwich census in 1820.

Alfred's older sister

I found Alfred originally in the index of the 1840 or so census. I decided to look for an A Adams based on my gggrandfather Augustus's name Augustus A Adams. Of course this hypothetical A Adams, father of Augustus, would have to live somewhere near Stamford or surroundings.

And I found him right away. Alfred A Adams, Stamford CT. I was able to verify it later, which is a different story.

Now I am trying to find Alfred's sister. Here are the names I know for the 5 children of Rufus Adams and Sarah Douglas: unknown (F)    Alfred    Annie    unknown (M)    Sarah Elizabeth

My guess is that they started out with the intention of having all the kids' names start with A. If this sounds strange to you, it doesn't to me. Rufus was a schoolteacher, as my father was. To a schoolteacher, A is best. In our family we grew up 'knowing' we were better because our last name was Adams.

So applying the same idea to Rufus, I am guessing at the moment that he intended for all his kids to have names starting with A. Until they ran out, or till a better idea came to them in their maturity. After all, Sarah E was born when they were well into their 30s.

I also had in mind that since Annie Adams Duncan named her only daughter Addie, it might be a family name.

So armed with these possibilities, I just now went to the Greenwich census in 1850, the first census in which family names are given.

I entered Addie, born 1814, Greenwich, CT. 

And I got Adelia A Studwell, born 1815, Greenwich. Apparently a widow, living with younger Studwell men, one of whom could have been a son: John 18, and Nelson 24. She is 35, so it is more likely they are brothers of a deceased husband.

I haven't found her so far in the 1860 census. 

As a point of reference, Adeline, dau of Annie Adams Duncan, was born in 1851 in New York City. Annie would have been Adelia's sister. Adeline means little Adelia.

Nothing can be concluded at this point. We have a woman Adelia A, who was born in the same year as Alfred's sister, according to the early census record (1820). We have those A's in her name. She lived in the right place, in Greenwich. And her younger sister named her only daughter by a similar name.

But that's all we know for now. It's just a guess so far, with a few good supporting data points.

If you want to help on this, please post your comments here.

Analysis: A letter to Karen about Alfred and Rufus

We have had growing evidence of a connection between Rufus Adams of Greenwich and Sarah Douglas his wife of 'CT' as the parents of Alfred.

[They had an older dau, then a son the right age to be Alfred, then Anne, then a boy, then Sarah E. The range of birthdates is about 1814 to 1831. We are not sure Alfred is that second son - yet.]

Last night I found that Anne Adams Duncan was buried next to her husband David Duncan. A child Addie was also buried, though she died as an adult in 1916. And the three of them are buried next to Rufus and Sarah. 

So it seems reasonable that she is their daughter. She is the right age to fit into their family structure as known from censuses, too.

The family is buried between a large plot of Stottlars and Warrens, and then followed by Warrens. In fact, with a few small interruptions, it goes like this:

Stottlar families (Stottlar, Stevens, Koch) - Warren families (Warren, Jessup, Gorham) - Adams families (Adams, Duncan, Warren) - Dobson families (related to Warrens) - Adams family - Warren family. 

These are all rather contiguous, though I will go back and verify how big the gaps are.

But moving on, here is some new information. I found an 1860 census record of David and Anne Duncan living in New York City with their children. They are (big breath!): Lorenzo b 1846, Douglas b 1848, and Adeline b 1851. David and Anne are the right ages and they were born in CT, as was Lorenzo. The other two were born in NY.

This is interesting to me because of the name Lorenzo. This is Lorenzo Duncan. Earlier today I asked why Lorenzo D Stottlar was named that - who was it after? Or who were the Duncans? 

Lorenzo D Stottlar was a later son of Mary Jane Adams, who had already had John (named after his father), Victor E, and Guy. (Guy is also interesting, but not for now!). 

Now if Anne Adams was Mary Jane's aunt, as she would have been if Alfred fits into the family at the top of this message, then it would have been reasonable to name a child after her son. But if they were not related, if it were some random thing, then what a major coincidence! This Adams (Anne, dau of Rufus) has a son named Lorenzo Duncan, and that Adams (Mary Jane) has a son named Lorenzo Duncan Stottlar. And both were born in CT? And this is a coincidence? Makes reason stare!

Looking at the ages (to make sure the arrow of cause and effect is pointed in the right direction), Lorenzo D Stottlar was born in July 1861 (and also Lorenzo Jackson Adams was born in Port Chester in Dec 1861 - who is Alfred's grandson and Mary's, Fran's, and my ggfather. These two Lorenzos are known first cousins who grew up within 15 miles or so of each other.).

And Lorenzo Duncan? He was born in 1846. He was 15 years old when these boys came along. Maybe he died young, maybe not... I'll go look shortly.

It is beyond my comprehension that Lorenzo Duncan Stottlar could have been named for any other reason than that a relative was named that, or a famous person. 

Aunt Anne was born in 1820. She lived in Greenwich and New York City. She was 22 when Hannah died. She may have taken an interest in her brother Alfred's young children. Lorenzo, her son, was born just a few years later, and since he was born in CT, we know she was still there at that time.

Mary Jane got the name Lorenzo Duncan from somewhere, and what better place to borrow it from than from her little cousin, 8 years her junior? 

To me this ties together the family of Rufus, Sarah, and Anne and the family of Alfred, Hannah, and Mary Jane. And of course we have the extra little Lorenzo who was Augustus's son. 

If it were just Lorenzo, I would look at it and say it was inconclusive. But Lorenzo Duncan? I checked google and couldn't find a famous person of that name in that time. The only known Lorenzo Duncan was right there in the family. What do you think?

As for the rest of the census (1860), Douglas was named after his grandmother Sarah, double-securing the Anne - Rufus tie, and Adeline was the Addie of the graveyard. Where did the name Lorenzo come from before Lorenzo Duncan? I don't know. I'm just...

THRILLED that we have now got Alfred's parents, after nearly 30 years (intermittent though they were!). A special thanks to Karen Elias, who supplied key info and said just yesterday morning, " I think it's got to be Rufus". I have spent the last 30 hours trying to disprove that and I give up! With joy! 

We have pieces to fit in. Who was the older sister? Who was the younger brother? And...who were Rufus's and Sarah's parents? 

As with every step of family history, every time you solve one problem you inevitably have to more - that former problem's parents. Ready set go!

I'm really keen on getting your feedback. If you don't think this makes sense, say so! Find the loose ends.

And before I end, I want to say a big thanks to Malcolm Stottler, who worked very hard at this for a very long time and who kept records full of clues that we can look at today. Helen, please accept our gratitude for him! Love to all, Peg

Story: How we found Rufus

All these stories depend on input from many sources. Finding Rufus was no exception. Here is the barebones sequence of events that led us to find him. Karen Elias, Helen Leaver, Malcolm Stottler (dec.) and Mary Brett all contributed over time.

Alfred Adams was the earliest name we knew in that line. He married Hannah Scott in Greenwich in 1834. Later he was in Stamford working. Otherwise he seems to have left no trail.

I worked through Adamses in Redding CT, where there was a cluster of them, and in New York from Poughkeepsie down to Port Chester and up to Bedford. There were some in Norwalk, too. I looked wherever there were Adamses.

Alfred was born in either CT or NY, depending on the census. He was born around 1815, with some variation on either side.

Candidates for his birth family that I had recently focused on included John in Bedford NY, all the Adamses in Stamford in 1810, and Nathan and Rufus in Greenwich. 

The idea was to go through the censuses, which at that stage had only numbers of family members in each age range, to see which might have a son born in about 1815.

The year 1815 makes it tricky because for example in the 1820 census he could have been in the 5-10 year old range, or the 0-5 range.

The idea is to eliminate families that did not have males of the right age, then use a finer-toothed comb for the remainder. Then to compare the results with the family structure in the 1830 census to see if the good candidates from 1820 still made sense. And likewise compare with the 1810 to see if a child in the right range might have been too old.

A few candidates emerged: John in Bedford, Nathaniel in Stamford, Rufus in Greenwich...

I mentioned what I was doing to Karen Elias, who is a Scott but not an Adams, because she has a sound head for research and analysis, and she said, "I think it's Rufus". 

So I took another look at Rufus's family structure:

1820 census: girl 5-10, boy 0-5. 

1830 census: boy 10-15, girl 5-10, boy 5-10

1840 census: girl 5-10

The boy in 1820 and the older boy in 1830 could have been Alfred. It was worth pursuing.

Karen pointed out that even though one of Alfred's census records reported he had been born in NY, the rest said CT. So it was reasonable to stop looking at NY. That left only Nathaniel, Rufus, and several Adamses up the coast around the Westport area, farther afield than we usual find family members from that long ago but not impossible.

So I continued to look at Rufus. 

By the time the censuses started to list names of family members, in 1850, Alfred was 35 or so and long gone from his growing-up family.

So we needed other sources of information, and we could hope that other family members might help out.

I found a tantalizing tidbit in Malcolm Stottler's papers a few months ago, after his daughter Helen Leaver had sent them to me from her own collection. Among the papers we found a page that suggested that Malcolm was trying to assess whether Alfred could be the son of Rufus Adams and Sarah Douglas, which later I was to discover must have come from Stamford cemetery records. There he mentioned this possibility as the 5th of his possible scenarios, but the other 4 were missing. He also mentioned there that Alfred had been born at Sound Beach, a section on the far southeastern part of Greenwich right up against the Stamford line.

The cemetery records were from Woodland cemetery, which is very close to Sound Beach.

I had to assess why Malcolm might have put in his notes that Alfred was from Sound Beach. It was stated as a fact, not as one of many scenarios. So I took it at face value, though elsewhere in Malcolm's notes there were obvious errors. At least it was a good starting point.

The next source I used was the Stamford cemetery records that are posted in this blog. I thought the nearness of certain graves was important, and I knew that the Stottlers, Warrens, and Davenports, among others, were all family members. 

And very close to graves for some members of those families were the graves of Rufus Adams, Sarah Douglas Adams. Next to them are Addie Duncan, David Duncan, and Annie Adams Duncan. 

In addition to 'Annie Adams Duncan' the Duncan name really attracted my attention. Mary Jane Adams Stottler, Alfred's daughter, named her 4th son Lorenzo Duncan Stottler. So I suspected Duncan was a family name and here was Annie Adams marrying David Duncan. 

I just couldn't make the pieces fit.

This email I wrote to Karen as I thought this through will tell the next chapter in the story.

Data: Cemetery records, Stamford

Here are some cemetery records related to this effort (Woodland Cemetery Records, Stamford CT):

5967 Stottlar, John, Captain, Co. C. 6th Conn. Vols., Civil War, born Oct. 7, 1832 [in NY], died Jan. 9, 1890. [son of John Stottlar, of France, and his wife, Catherine ?, of Strausberg, Germany]

5967 Stottlar, Mary Jane Adams, wife of John, born Aug. 24, 1838, died Jan. 9, 1925.

5968 Stottlar, John E., born 1857, died 1864. [son of John Stottlar & Mary Jane Adams]

5968 Stottlar, Mary J., born 1873, died 1873. [son of John Stottlar & Mary Jane Adams]

5968 Stottlar, Guy M., born 1881, died 1882. [son of John Stottlar & Mary Jane Adams]

5969 Stottlar, Lorenzo, Jr., born 1886. [son of Lorenzo D. Stottlar & Ellen Lunny]

5969 Stottlar, Annie L. Zarr, his wife, born 1891, died 1917. [daughter of Harry Zarr & Bertha L. Scofield]

5970 Stottlar, Lorenzo D., born [July 5,] 1861, died [Apr. 13,] 1953. [son of John Stottlar & Mary Jane Adams]

5970 Stottlar, Ellen Lunny, his wife, born 1859, died 1938. [possibly daughter of William Lunny & Mary ?]

5970 Stevens, Theodore R., born 1851, died 1926. [son of Rufus W. Stevens and Martha A. ?]

5970 Stevens, Ida E. Stottlar, his wife, born 1866, died 1946. [daughter of John Stottlar & Mary Jane Adams]

5970 Koch, Alfred C., born 1897, died 1968.

5970 Koch, Mildred A. Stevens, his wife, born 1898, died 1989. [daughter of Theodore R. Stevens & Ida E. Stottlar]

and later:

5995/6 Warren, Joseph D.[Davenport], born Oct. 2, 1809, died Apr. 2, 1900. [son of Thomas Warren & Ann Davenport]

5995/6 Warren, Maria Jessup, his wife, born Sept. 5, 1808, died Aug. 27, 1888. [daughter of Jonathan Jessup & Martha Scofield]

5997 Stottler, Helen Warren, [wife of Victor Emanuel Stottler] born Aug. 22, 1861, died Feb. 18, 1892. [daughter of John J. Warren & Helen Gorham]

5997 Stottler, Victor W., born Nov. 12, 1888, died Jan. 7, 1890. [son of Victor Emanuel Stottlar & Helen Warren]

5997 Stottler, Victor E.[Emanuel], born Aug. 1, 1859, died Apr. 24, 1906, Veteran. [son of John Stottlar & Mary J. Adams]

Warren, John Jessup, born Sept. 29, 1832, died Apr. 16, 1900. [son of Joseph Davenport Warren & Maria Jessup]

Warren, Helen Gorham, wife of John J., born Dec. 11, 1831, died July 27, 1910.

Warren, Henry J.[Joseph], born May 22, 1863, died Sept. 10, 1926. [son of John Jessup Warren & Helen Gorham]

Warren, Katherine, born May 20, 1867, died _____. [daughter of of John Jessup Warren & Helen Gorham]--

A short while later:

Adams, Rufus, died Sept. 14, 1858, age 73 yrs. War of 1812.

Adams, Sarah Douglas, wife of Rufus, died June 15, 1858, age 71 yrs.

6029 Duncan, Addie, daughter of David & Anne A., died Nov. 26, 1916.

6030 Duncan, David, born 1818, died 1866.

6031 Duncan, Anne Adams, wife of David, born 1820, died 1891.

5992 Warren, E. Chauncey, born 1808, died 1865. [Ephraim Chauncey Warren, son of Thomas Warren & Ann Davenport]

5992 Warren, Julia B., wife of E. [Ephraim] Chauncey, born 1816, died 1893. [Julia Barnum]

And then continuing on without interruption in the cemetery:

5993 Dobson, William Spencer, born Apr. 7, 1846, died Jan. 27, 1904. Civil War. [in Stamford by 1800; born in NY]

5993 Dobson, Charlotte E., his wife, born Feb. 13, 1850, died Sept. 3, 1923. [Charlotte E. Warren, daughter of Ephraim Chauncey Warren & Julia Barnum]

5994 Dobson, Warren Spencer, born Oct. 31, 1871, died Apr. 17, 1925. [son of William Spencer Dobson & Charlotte E. Warren]

The next five photos are of the same stone:

8652 ADAMS

8653 Adams, Nathaniel E., died Oct. 21, 1894, age 87 yrs. [son of John Adams & Molly Hobby]

8653 Adams, Sarah A. Dixon, wife of Nathaniel, died Apr. 16, 1890, age 84 yrs. [probably daughter of William Dixon & Hannah Holly]

8654 Powell, Albert M., Capt. & Bvt. Lt. Col. US Army, born Apr. 7, 1835, died June 10, 1868. Civil War.

8655 Adams, James E., died Apr. 27, 1877, age 37 yrs. [son of Nathaniel E. Adams & Sarah A. Dixon]

8655 Adams, John Quincy, died Sept. 24, 1889, age 48 yrs. [son of Nathaniel E. Adams & Sarah A. Dixon]

8656 Adams, Charles W., Jr., died May 27, 1882, age 26 yrs. [son of Nathaniel E. Adams & Sarah A. Dixon]

These were down a considerable distance:

8850 Warren, Anna E., [wife of George L. Warren] born July 20, 1837, died Nov. 25, 1888 [in Jersey City, NJ]. [Anna Eliza Brown]

8849 Warren, George L., born Dec. 30, 1834, died July 10, 1880. [son of Ephraim Chauncey Warren & Julia Barnum]

In the next section are these. Barbara still hasn't put in Denton for Julia A, and it's Devlin in an earlier mention:

5366 Scott, George W., born 1848, died 1912. [living in Greenwich in 1880] [son of Lewis J. Scott & Julia A. ?]

5366 Scott, Susan F. [Frances] Hyatt, his wife, born 1851, died 1918.

5365 Scott, Julia A., wife of Lewis J., died at Greenwich, CT, July 3, 1894, age 74 yrs. 5 mos. 22 days. [Julia Ann Devlon]

5364 Scott, Lewis J., Greenwich, CT, born July 2, 1811, died March 15, 1881, age 69 yrs. 8 mos. 13 days.

5359 A. W. SCOTT

5360 Scott, Albert W., born Aug. 6, 1856, died May 2, 1892. [son of Lewis J. Scott & Julia A. ?]

5360 Scott, Flora A. Waterbury, wife of Albert W., died Apr. 17, 1917. [daughter of Isaac Nelson Waterbury & Abigail S. Lockwood]

5361-5363 are additional sides of the above stone, containing text inscriptions, but no names or dates.

Then listed just a bit below:

5366 Scott, George W., born 1848, died 1912. [living in Greenwich in 1880] [son of Lewis J. Scott & Julia A. ?]

5366 Scott, Susan F. [Frances] Hyatt, his wife, born 1851, died 1918.

These were a short way down. I don't know the connection between the two Davenport families:

Davenport, George, died May 10, 1898, age 85 yrs. [son of James Davenport & Martha Warren]
Davenport, Georgia, daughter of George & Charlotte, died Jan. 30, 1891, age 31 yrs.

Davenport, Charlotte, wife of George, died Nov. 15, 1914, age 86 yrs. [Charlotte Scofield, daughter of Isaac Scofield & Sally Maria Warner]

This is one of Augustus's sons:

4553 ADAMS

4554 Adams, Emma F., daughter, born 1891, died 1980.

4555 Adams, Emma Hegel, wife, born 1864, died 1952.

4556 Adams, Robert F., born 1863, died 1926.

And more Scotts

3965 Scott, Chauncey E., born July 31, 1849, died Oct. 27, 1930. [son of Lewis J. Scott & Julia Ann Devlon]

3965 Scott, Emma M., his wife, born Apr. 11, 1854, died May 22, 1914.

I am stopping at the beg. of Section K.

Using this blog - purpose and overview

I hope anyone who has an interest in family lines mentioned here will use this blog. Send me your posts in email and I'll add them right away. Or maybe become a co-author. If you'd like to, let me know.

The family lines include the following, but are not limited to them:

Adams - Horan - Clark - Fagan - Scott - Stottler - Tanner - Wilcox - Manners - Priddy - Killian - Quigley - Wheeler

and many more.

The idea is to make note here of how we found the next generation in each line. Also notes about these people. Also musings. Whatever might help someone else follow the trail and either accept the results or provide cogent supported reasons why the results are unacceptable.

It should be used, I think, in conjunction with the Adams Family Tree and possibly other trees on ancestry.com. Otherwise too much explanation will be needed about who people are who are discussed in these posts. The corollary to that suggestion is that everyone written about here should appear in the Adams Family Tree or be added at the time of the post. 

Links to data and the person on the tree would be especially helpful in your post.

And you can send any single one of these posts to anyone if there's an interest.

Research suggestions are also welcome.

Photos too. Anything that might further our understanding of our ancestors. Essays would be great. And substantive comments on posts are particularly helpful.

If you have a research question, please post it as a query. Query: Why did the Adamses move to Norwalk? in the title bar at the top of the post. Make all titles as explicit and focused as possible.

Other suggestions?