Learning More About Benjamin Reed: The Power of Collateral Research

A fascinating Reed discovery involves Martha J. Lamb, a historian, writer, and granddaughter of Benjamin's thought-to-be sister Joanna. Her papers, donated to various institutions,
promise to be a valuable resource for further research.[1]

The research I find most rewarding, yet also the most time-consuming, is digging into collateral relatives. In collateral research, you explore your non-direct-line ancestors. When faced with a challenging question, I often shift my focus to the siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren of my ancestors.  

With my six-year-old grandson spending the summer with me, I've had limited time for large projects or blog posts. Instead, I've focused on researching the collateral family members of my ancestor, Benjamin Reed. This was something I could work on in brief intervals. 

Benjamin Reed was born in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, in 1752. His father is said to be Peter Reed.[2]  While birth records document all of Benjamin's possible siblings as children of Peter, Benjamin's own birth or baptismal record has not been found.[3]

I have exhausted all resources in my search for Benjamin Reed. I have found records online, in archives, and in libraries. DNA matches and indirect evidence point to Peter as Benjamin's father. Collateral research is the next step to finding additional records.  

My Question

Was Benjamin Reed, born in 1752 in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, the son of Peter Reed, who was born in 1723 in Abington, Plymouth County, Massachusetts?

Steps I’m Taking

Click to see my most recent log format. 
Creating My All-Encompassing Genealogy
Research Log in OneNote

I will research Benjamin's siblings, children, and in-laws, along with their children, grandchildren, and maybe great-grandchildren. I will research Peter's siblings and in-laws in the same manner.

I use Microsoft OneNote to maintain individual research logs for each collateral family member and their descendants. These logs combine previously gathered information, new discoveries, and my thoughts and analysis.

I continually add these individuals to my Ancestry.com tree, which syncs with my Family Tree Maker account, and add comments and notes to entries. Found documents are filed by direct-line ancestors in surname-specific digital folders.

In my Reed family files, I have a folder for each direct line ancestor. The folder for John Reed, father of Peter, contains all information about John, his wife, and all children except Peter, my direct ancestor. Peter gets his own folder that contains information about him, his wife, her family, and all of his children except Benjamin, my direct ancestor, who gets his own folder, and so on.

Recent Discoveries 

1. While I haven't yet answered my question, I've uncovered connections and information that enabled me to easily document Reed ThruLines DNA matches at Ancestry.com. This has definitely strengthened my confidence in Benjamin's connection to Peter Reed. 

2. Although I've only researched a small number of the collateral family members, I've already found three whose writings or family papers may answer my question. I am waiting to receive copies from manuscript collections found in Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and New York.  

Collateral research may not answer all questions, but exploring these extended family tree branches always yields a wealth of information, resources, and clues. 

If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page, where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 

Diana

© 2024 

Sources

[1] Frances E. Willard and Mary A. Livermore, A Woman of the Century: Fourteen Hundred-seventy Biographical Sketches Accompanied by Portraits of Leading American Women in All Walks of Life. 1893 (https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_Woman_of_the_Century/zXEEAAAAYAAJ?hl=en : accessed 1 September 2024), pages 444 - 445, images 455-456). And, Martha J. Lamb, The Magazine of American History,1888, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/magazineofamericv20n6stev : accessed 1 September 2024). And, 

Martha J. Lamb, History of the City of New York: its origin, rise, and progress Vol 1, 1877, Library of Congress (https://www.loc.gov/item/01001942/ : accessed 1 September 2024).

[2] John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy : Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts from 1635-1902 Vol. I  (no publisher named, 1901). 

[3] Birth Records for the Children of Peter Reed, in the Brockton, MA First Parish Congregational Church records, 1738-1980, RG0037, The Congregational Library & Archives, Boston, MA (https://congregationallibrary.quartexcollections.com/Documents/Detail/church-records-1740-1805-first-parish-congregational-church-in-north-bridgewater/5618? : accessed 1 August 2024).