My 64 ~ Researching My Fourth Great Grandparents : Jacob Steeves and Eleanor Bleakney

My fourth great grandfather, Jacob Steeves, was born on May 3, 1788, most probably in Hillsborough, Albert County, New Brunswick, the first son of Matthias Steeves and Sophia Beck, and the second of thirteen children. He was the grandson of Heinrich Stief and Regina Stahlecker, who settled in Hillsborough 250 years ago.

My fourth great grandmother, Eleanor "Nellie" Bleakney, was born in the early 1800's, the daughter of William Bleakney and Barbara Jacques. She was the granddaughter of David Blakeney and his wife Elizabeth, who were part of a group of South Carolina Loyalists who had arrived in Canada in late 1782.  I wrote of her grandfather in 2015, in my blog series My Canadian Branches.

The couple were married in Westmorland County on November 12, 1818. They settled on the Pollett River, a tributary of the Petitcodiac, undoubtedly near where the Bleakney clan had settled. This map shows the area very well.

According to Esther Clark Wright, they had four children, two sons and two daughters. I have found William Bleakney and Jacob, Barbara and possibly Eliza:

Barbara, b. abt. 1821

William Bleakney, b. abt. 1823

Eliza, b. possibly 1827

Jacob, b. abt. 1828

The Steeves House Museum lists two additional children, a son George Bleakney Steeves, born abt. 1832, and a daughter Catherine Bleakney Steeves, b. abt. 1834, but further research is needed on these.

Daughter Barbara married Andrew Anderson, and is buried with him in Boundary Creek Cemetery in Moncton.  William Bleakney married a granddaughter of Henry, Christian's son, Charlotte Ann Steeves, and is buried with her in Hillside United Baptist Church Cemetery in Hillside.

The graves of Jacob and Eleanor are unknown.

Map Credit:

Roe Brothers, (A.D. & W.B. Roe), base maps are from British Admiralty charts and National Surveys [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Petitcodiac-river-map-closeup1.png)

Sources:

"Canada Census, 1851," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MW5B-TDL : accessed 21 May 2015), Eleanor Steeves, Coverdale, Albert County, New Brunswick, Canada; citing p. 2, line 35; Library and Archives Canada film number C_994, Public Archives, Ontario..

Canada, Marriages, 1661-1949," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/F2P9-PMD : accessed 30 December 2014), Jacob Steves and Eleanor Bleakney, 12 Nov 1818; citing Westmorland,New Brunswick, reference ; FHL microfilm 847,576.

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  16 Nov 2016), memorial page for Barbara Steeves Anderson (unknown-1874), Find A Grave Memorial no. 119762001, citing Boundary Creek Cemetery, Moncton, Westmorland County, New Brunswick, Canada.

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  16 Nov 2016), memorial page for William B Steeves (1823-1899), Find A Grave Memorial no. 158435290, citing Hillside United Baptist Church Cemetery, Hillside, Albert County, New Brunswick, Canada.

Wright, Esther Clark. Samphire Greens: The Story of the Steeves. 2nd ed. (Hillsborough, NB: The Steeves Family Inc., 2001), p. 63.

My 64 ~ Researching My Fourth Great Grandparents : Christian Steeves and Christiana Jones

My fourth great grandfather, Christian Steeves, was born in Coverdale, Albert County, New Brunswick, sometimes in 1806. His parents were Henry Steeves (1780-1856) and Ann "Nancy" Sinton (1777-1856). This Christian Steeves is the great grandson of Heinrich Stief and Regina Stahlecker, who arrived in Hillsborough 250 years ago.

Little is known about Christian, until he and Christiana Jones, registered their intention to marry on July 26, 1827, in Westmorland County. They were married three months later on the same date.

My fourth great grandmother, Christiana Jones, was also born in 1806, in Hillsborough, the daughter of Henry Jones (1758-1840) and Ann Christiana Somers (1763-1837). She descends, on her father's side, from the original Monckton settler, Charles Jones, and, on her mother's side, from the early Monckton settler, Matthias Sommer.

Model of the Lovey, which carried the Monckton Settlers to the banks of the Petitcodiac.
Picture taken by me in the Steeves House Museum in Hillsborough
 during Steeves250 in July 2016

Description of the Lovey model.

The 1851, 1861, and the 1871 Censuses of Canada show my great grandparents living first in Moncton, and later in Elgin, in Albert County. Christian was a farmer, and, as such, required a large family. Christian and Christiana had 11 children, by most accounts, seven sons and four daughters:

Henry, b. 1828

Charlotte Ann, b. abt. 1829 *

Jacob Watson, b. 1832

Ellen, b. 1836

Caroline, b. 1837

Jordan Kennie, b. 1839

Abigail, b. 1841

Thomas Ansley, b. 1845

Oliver Christian, b. 1847

Johnson, b. 1848

and

Howard, b. 1850

*my third great grandmother

The Christian Visitor newspaper, in Saint John, noted the passing of my fourth great grandfather thusly, in their July 24, 1878 issue:

"Died at Gowland Mountain, 11th June, of inflammation of the lungs, Christian STEEVES, age 71. Our dear brother was born at Coverdale (Albert Co.) in the year 1808; moved to Elgin in the spring of '55; and in the Auntumn '63, while attending a series of meetings held by Brothers M. Starrett and J.C. Steadman was led by the Divine Spirit to believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God. Himself, his wife and three sons were all baptized and united with the third Elgin Church. Our brother has left a widow, three sons and five daughters."

Two years later, The Times of Moncton, mentioned my 4th great grandmother's death, in their February 3, 1880 paper.

"d. Elgin (Albert Co.) 4th Jan., of inflammation, Christiana STEEVES relict of Deacon Christian STEEVES. She professed faith in Christ, Sept. '64 and was baptized by Rev. Daniel V. Crandall and united with the 3rd Elgin Baptist Church where she remained a member until her death., age 73, left five sons, four daughters."

Although I discovered one of their sons, Thomas Ansley Steeves, and his wife, Berthina Jane Gibson, buried in Southside Cemetery, in Skowhegan, Maine, I do not know where my fourth great grandparents are buried.

Sources:

1851 Census of Canada of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia ; Census Place: Moncton, Westmorland County, New Brunswick; Schedule: I; Roll: C_997; Page: 65; Line: 6

1861 Census of Canada [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009.

1871 Census of Canada; Census Place: Elgin, Albert, New Brunswick; Roll: C-10395; Page: 25; Family No: 73.

"Canada Marriages, 1661-1949," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F2P9-4NT:5 December 2014), Christian Steves and Christiana Jones, 26 Jul 1827; citing Westmorland,New Brunswick, reference ; FHL microfilm 847,576.

Bowser, Les. The Settlers of Monckton Township. (Omemee, ON: 250th Productions, 2016).

Daniel F. Johnson's New Brunswick Newspaper Vital Statistics, 1784-1890, Provincial Archives of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB, Canada. http://archives.gnb.ca/. Accessed  11/13/2016.

Wright, Esther Clark. Samphire Greens: The Story of the Steeves. 2nd ed. (Hillsborough, NB: The Steeves Family Inc., 2001).

My 64 ~ Researching My Fourth Great Grandparents : "Squire" George Steeves and Martha Smith

Having traveled this July to Hillsborough, New Brunswick, to attend the Steeves250 celebration, I will focus my next 3 posts on my 3 sets of Steeves 4th great grandparents :

"Squire" George Steeves and Martha Smith

Jacob Steeves and Eleanor Bleakney

and

Christian Steeves and Christianna Jones

Steeves House Museum during the Steeves250 celebration (July 2016)

My fourth great grandfather, George Steeves, was born most probably in Hillsborough, New Brunswick, on December 1, 1785, the fifth child of Jacob Steeves and Anna Catherina Lutz, and their fourth son. He was the grandson of Heinrich Stief and Regina Stahlecker, who settled in Moncton, and later in Hillsborough, in 1766.  The Steeves250 celebration this summer commemorated Heinrich and Regina's arrival in Canada, 250 years ago, from Philadelphia, having begun their long journey in Germany.

Map showing Hillsborough, Moncton,
and the Petitcodiac River 

My fourth great grandmother, Martha Smith, was also born, probably in Hillsborough, on June 18, 1788, the daughter of Charles Smith and Suzanne Govang. She was the granddaughter of James Smith, an Irishman who had been one of the first settlers of Hillsborough in 1770.

Together, George and Martha Steeves, as was common in farming families of this era and locale, had 11 children in quick succession, probably all born in Hillsborough:

Mary, b. 1813

Ann, b. 1814

Caroline, b. 1816

Albert D., b. 1818

Rachel, b. 1820

George William, b. 1822

Martha, b. 1824

Catherine, b. 1825

Susan, b. 1827

James Jacob, b. 1830

and

Permilia Jane, b. 1834

With eight daughters and three sons, with one son never marrying, and another having only daughters, George hardly contributed to furthering the family name. Not to worry; there were plenty of other Steeves family members to do so.

George came to be known in his later years as "Squire" George. Although there has been the suggestion that he was a schoolmaster, it is more likely that he may have handled legal matters for the Steeves clan. Whether he had the training to do so, however, is in doubt. The title may have been bestowed simply because of his stature, physical or by reputation, in Hillsborough.

Martha died on June 6, 1839. Five years after her death, the widower George married Elizabeth Smith, the eldest daughter of my fourth great grandparents, Robert Smith and Hannah Veckle Beck (more on them in a future post!). George died on May 16, 1870, and his second wife, Elizabeth, died exactly one year later, on May 16, 1871.

George and his two wives, Martha and Elizabeth, are buried in the Hillsborough Pioneer Cemetery, right in the heart of Hillsborough, next to the First Hillsborough United Baptist Church. Hence, Find A Grave designates the burial ground as the First Hillsborough United Baptist Church Cemetery.

Hillsborough Pioneer Cemetery during Steeves250

Hillsborough Pioneer Cemetery during Steeves250

Headstone of Martha Smith Steeves

Close-up of Martha's Headstone

Monument to George and 2d wife Elizabeth

Close-up of George and Elizabeth's monument

Sources:

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  24 Aug 2016), memorial page for George Steeves (1784-1870), Find A Grave Memorial no. 142780831, citing First Hillsborough United Baptist Church Cemetery, Hillsborough, Albert County, New Brunswick, Canada.

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  24 Aug 2016), memorial page for Martha Steves (1788-1839), Find A Grave Memorial no. 142772904, citing First Hillsborough United Baptist Church Cemetery, Hillsborough, Albert County, New Brunswick, Canada.

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  24 Aug 2016), memorial page for Elizabeth Steeves (1793-1871), Find A Grave Memorial no. 142780888, citing First Hillsborough United Baptist Church Cemetery, Hillsborough, Albert County, New Brunswick, Canada.

Wright, Esther Clark. Samphire Greens: The Story of the Steeves. 2d ed. (Hillsborough, NB: The Steeves Family Inc., 2001).

My Canadian Branches ~ I'm a Steeves, Are You?

Throughout the past year, I have dedicated this blog to selected Canadian branches of my family tree. I have always found that my research leads me down the most interesting paths when I focus on one family group, one line, one person, or one theme. This has proven true especially in 2015. As I stated in my first post, I chose to work on the following 10 families:

Nova Scotia

Archibald

Creelman

Fulton

Hamilton

MacKay

New Brunswick

Beck

Bleakney

Bustin

Smith
Steeves

My last Canadian branch is the Steeves branch. By way of intermarriage between members of the Steeves family and the Smith family in New Brunswick, I happen to descend from 2 of the 7 sons of my sixth great grandparents Heinrich Stieff and Regina Stahlecker, Matthias and Jacob.

Line 1:

Matthias Steeves (c.1761-1848)

--Jacob Steeves (1788-c.1846)

----William Bleakney Steeves (c.1823-1899)

------Robina Elizabeth Steeves (1854-1929)

--------Wylie Herbert Smith (1874-1952)

----------Harriet Cheney Smith (1906-1985)

------------Marilyn Louise Bustin (1931-    )

--------------Me (1955-    )

Line 2:

Jacob Steeves (1750-1803)

--George Steeves (1785-1870

----Caroline Steeves (1816-1903)

------James Henry Smith (1850-1915)

--------Wylie Herbert Smith (1874-1952)

----------Harriet Cheney Smith (1906-1985)

------------Marilyn Louise Bustin (1931-    )

--------------Me (1955-)

Probably the most prominent member of my Steeves family tree is my 2nd cousin 4x removed, William Henry Steeves, known in the annals of Canadian history as The Father of Confederation.

More on William Henry Steeves can be found at:

Spray, W. A. -- "Steeves, William Henry". -- Dictionary of Canadian biography online. www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=39400

Next year, 2016, will be the 250th Anniversary of the arrival of Heinrich and Rachel Stieff to New Brunswick (from Germany, by way of Pennsylvania). In preparation of this momentous event, a week-long celebration and family reunion is being held in Hillsborough, New Brunswick. Steeves descendants are coming from around the world, and Yours Truly will be among them!

For more on the Steeves story, and on next year's BIG CELEBRATION, including our attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of individuals with the same last name in the same place at the same time, in the Moncton Coliseum, visit:

https://steeves250.com/