14 Children, 5 Child Graves

Recently, while working on sourcing my ancestor Jonathan Seavey, of Bridgton, Maine, I became increasingly fascinated with the many children he had, with two wives, and how many died as children. As I came to grasp how sorrowful this must have been, I wondered if it might help me to put his family life on a timeline.


Searching online for something quick and easy, I came across this free Excel timeline template and this (click on chart for better view) is the very cool result!

Sentimental Sunday - Nettie's Story

The following is one of the most romantic and sentimental stories from my family tree. I reproduce it as it appeared on Ancestry.com, 3/29/2010, posted by ALMORRILL:

Nettie’s Story
This story comes from my grandmother (Constance dau. of Jospeh (sic) & Lena Trumble).  The story is backed up by supporting documents, such as census, marriage and death documents.

Nettie’s story is filled with love and enjoy (sic), combined with great sadness and loss.  She married Clarence Seavey, who she loved very much according to those that knew Nettie & Clarence.  They had six children within 10 years.

Upon Clarence (sic) illness, it is reported he asked a dear friend and neighbor Joseph Stephen Trumble (unmarried & never been married at this point) to care for his wife and children after his death.  Please marry her, care for her and the children.  Clarence died in Feb 1902.

Therefore, after a number of respectable months later Joseph married Nettie, who knew of her husband’s wishes too.  According to the oldest of the children, Joseph was a wonderful stepdad and husband to their mother, whom (sic) continue to grief (sic) over their father’s death.  Saddening the children had any great loss their mother only 2 years later (Dec. 1904).  At this time, Nettie’s family knowing of Joseph (sic) promise, felt he had more than met it, released him of the children’s care and his promise in Jan. 1905.

He remarried on Nov. 1905 to Lena Bell Cox of Poland, Maine.  They had 6 children of their own. However, according to my grandmother (one of their daughters) it was told to her by her mother (Lena) that Joseph (her dad) always continued to check in with the family members that completed the raising of Nettie & Clarence (sic) children.

Footnote on their deaths:
It is believed that Clarence died of TB.  Many said Nettie just died of a broken heart.  However, it is now believe (sic) although it may be true she to (sic) had a broken heart, that she actually had TB or complication of.  It was ruled pneumonia.

Clarence and Nettie Seavey were my great-grandparents. There were actually 7 children, as Nettie was pregnant with Archie Forrest Seavey (born 9/14/1902) when Clarence died. So, you see, Joseph really was a gentleman, in marrying Nettie at that time.

I connected with Christine (ALMORRILL) thu Ancestry.com this weekend. She and I have exchanged several emails. Hopefully I will get to meet her in October when I return to Maine for a visit.

Treasure Chest Thursday - Aunt Beck's Autograph Book 1925

Among the many treasures handed on to me is this autograph book belonging to my Great Aunt Beck. Born Flora Vesta Bustin (1907-1964), she was Fred and Vina's oldest child, the only daughter of four children. This book, with entries mostly dated 1925, contains many gems, favorite rhymes of the time. She would have been about 18 years old when she passed this around (high school graduation time perhaps), and obviously was dearly loved by her large family and close friends. I remember her from my childhood, and know she was very dear to my mother's heart.

This entry is from her younger brother Lawrence (whom I knew as Uncle Laurie):


"May 11, 1925
Oh may your virtue
ever spread
Like butter on
hot gingerbread


Lawrence Bustin
D.J.H.S. (Deering Junior High School)"

And here, faintly, is a bit of wisdom from her mother:


"May 3rd 1925
Dear Vesta
Love many
Trust fun
And always
Paddle your own
canoe.
from your Mother"

"Facebook" Page for a Hero

Following up on Tom MacEntee's lead regarding the use of a Google Docs Template to create a fake Facebook page for one of my ancestors, here's what I came up with.

Sgt. George Dalton Libby was my 1st cousin once removed, and was the first Korean War Medal of Honor recipient.

 

Tombstone Tuesday - The Lovell-Olsen Lot

I grew up always knowing this as Aunt Polly's grave. Dad and Mom were sometimes the only ones who tended to it, putting red geraniums in the urn. The urn has cracked now, and is quite pitiful looking. This is Dad, last summer on one of our last cemetery visits. On that day I was able to find out from the cemetery office that there are eight people buried on this lot in Forest City Cemetery, South Portland, Maine:

1. Mattie (aka Martha and Matilda) Packard Brackley Crilley, Pauline and Alice's grandmother (born a Packard - hence my father's middle name - he was not named for the car!)
2. Louisa L. Brackley Lovell Spalding Washburn, Pauline and Alice's mother
3. Pauline M. Lovell, who never married, as far as I can tell
4. Wallace Olsen, son of Lawrence and Alice
5. Lawrence B. Olsen, Alice's second husband
6. Alice N. Lovell, her sister, and my great-grandmother
7. Fred Olsen, son of Lawrence and Alice
8. Lawrence Olsen, Jr., son of Lawrence and Alice

Follow Friday - History of Bridgton, Maine

I am so glad that I was able to pick up a copy of this book from the Bridgton Historical Society several years ago. There are a few mentions in it of my ancestor Jonathan Seavey (1795-1858 ), who was a blacksmith there, and his son Clarence (1853-1902 ), my great-grandfather.

Jonathan was involved in laying out the lots for the Sandy Creek Cemetery, in Bridgton, according to this book, and is buried there, with both his wives, and some of his children from both marriages.

Wordless Wednesday - Down East in Nova Scotia

Tombstone Tuesday - Nana and Pap

Frederick Parker Bustin and Melvina Jane Hamilton are buried under this gravestone in Evergreen Cemetery in Portland, Maine. They are my maternal great-grandparents. Fred and Vina came from Canada, he from New Brunswick and she from Nova Scotia.


Actually, Fred and his two brothers married Melvina and her two sisters. There was a big write-up in the Portland paper about it, but that's a good story to save for another post!