52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #20 — Nancy Reed Glynn of Putney, Vermont

Nancy Reed, my third great-grandmother, was one of the children of Benjamin Reed and Huldah Pratt. According to The Reed Genealogy, she was born on 2 August 1798. Her birthplace is not stated in that account, but if she was born at her parents' home, she may have been born in Woodford, Bennington County, Vermont, where Benjamin and Huldah resided from about 1788 until at least 1803.

Nancy’s parents, Benjamin and Huldah, had deep New England roots. Benjamin Reed had served in the Revolutionary War and later moved his family from Massachusetts into Vermont. Benjamin wrote in his pension record that, while in Vermont, he lived in Woodford, Wardsboro, and Putney. By 1812, Benjamin, Huldah, and several of their children were living in Putney, Windham County, Vermont.

Nancy grew up in a large family. Some of her siblings lived long enough to leave records in Vermont and beyond, while others appear only briefly in the records. The Reed Genealogy names her siblings as Benjamin Jr., John, Cyrus, David, Calvin, Huldah, Betsey, Luther, and Almira. Combined information from the U.S. census and The Reed Genealogy suggests the probable Reed household in 1820, shown below.

Before Nancy’s marriage, I found her name in Putney records twice, both on the same day, 2 January 1821, in land transactions involving her parents and her brother Luther. Benjamin and Huldah sold land to Luther Read, and Luther then leased the farm back to Benjamin and Huldah for their natural lives. The rent was symbolic: one ear of corn each January 2nd, if demanded.

“To Have and to hold the said Land and buildings unto the said Benjamin Read and Huldah his wife, for and during their natural lives, and whichsoever of them shall continue the longest, they or either of them yealding and paying therefor, on the second day of January each and every year, one ear of corn if demanded on the premises.”

On 19 January 1829, Nancy Reed married Joseph T. Glynn* in Putney, Vermont. She was about thirty years old. Joseph was from nearby Dummerston and was often referred to as Truman.

Nancy and Joseph made their home in Putney and had at least three children:

• Caroline Almira Glynn, born 22 July 1829 in Putney

• Henry Reed Glynn, born 2 June 1833 in Putney

• Joseph Albert Glynn, born 13 February 1835 in Putney, my second great-grandfather

Only a few weeks before Joseph Albert’s birth, Nancy’s father, Benjamin Reed, died in Putney on 10 January 1835. Nancy’s mother, Huldah Pratt Reed, lived several more years and died in Putney on 17 May 1842. Huldah lived long enough to know all three of Nancy and Joseph’s known children. In the 1840 census of pensioners, Huldah was identified as living in Joseph T. Glynn’s household.

On 11 April 1842, shortly before Huldah’s death, Luther Read conveyed land in Putney to Nancy Glynn, wife of Joseph T. Glynn, for $10. The parcel began on the River Road near a little brook north of Elisha Wilber’s property and included the privilege of taking water from a spring about sixteen rods north of the land, by logs. The land was part of a lot Luther had bought from James Lowell.

The next year, on 10 May 1843, Luther Read sold a 60-acre Putney parcel to Lydia A. Campbell and Sophronia Sabin for $1,150. That deed reserved Nancy Glynn’s earlier right to take water from the spring under Luther’s deed to her dated 11 April 1842. Nancy and her heirs had to keep the logs or lead pipe covered, avoid unnecessary injury to the soil, and maintain a fence around her land at no expense to the new owners.

The 1850 census places Nancy in Putney, where she was living with her husband Joseph, a laborer, and their three children. Seventeen-year-old Henry and fifteen-year-old Albert attended school during the year and were also identified as laborers. Their daughter Caroline was twenty-one years old. Nancy’s brother Luther, a widower, was enumerated just above the Glynn family with three of his minor children. Luther’s wife, Jerusha, had died on 24 May 1850 at only thirty-eight years old.

That same year, Joseph and Nancy were also involved in a land transaction with the Vermont Valley Railroad Company. On 13 May 1850, they conveyed land to the railroad. The deed referred to “our land,” and Nancy was examined separately from her husband before acknowledging that she signed freely and without fear or compulsion. That detail is a reminder that Nancy’s legal interest in the land had to be formally recognized.

On 26 July 1850, Nancy’s brother Calvin died by accidental drowning at Mandarin, Duval County, Florida. He had been living in Florida for about twenty-five years.

The next year, Nancy’s youngest brother, Luther Read, died on 27 November 1851. A probate-related paper states that Luther Reed died leaving five minor children, one son and four daughters, and also one sister, the wife of Joseph T. Glynn, all then living in Putney. This record is especially important because it identifies Nancy, wife of Joseph T. Glynn, as Luther’s sister.

Less than a year after Luther’s death, Nancy and Joseph lost their only daughter. Caroline Almira Glynn died on 6 August 1852 at the age of twenty-three from what was then called consumption, now known as tuberculosis. Her obituary follows:

“In Putney, Aug. 6, of consumption, Miss CAROLINE ALMINA, daughter of Joseph F. and Nancy Glynn, aged 23. Being an only daughter, she naturally won an unusual share of parental and fraternal affection, which was the more deserved on account of her excellent moral qualities. She bore a lingering sickness with christian fortitude and resignation. Trusting in the mercy of God through the merits of a crucified Saviour, she met the closing scene with calmness, leaving evidence that hers was the death of the righteous. Printers in Mass. and N. H. please copy.”

Nancy’s name appears in 1853 on a paper regarding one of Luther’s minor daughters, Hellen [Helen] Read. On 26 August 1853, Nancy Glynn signed a request asking the Probate Court for the District of Westminster to appoint a guardian for Hellen, who was under the age of fourteen. This places Nancy in Putney and still involved in Reed family matters less than a year before her own death.

Nancy Reed Glynn died in Putney on 2 April 1854, at about age fifty-five. She is buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in Putney, along with her daughter Caroline and her son Joseph Albert.

Nancy did not leave many records that tell her story directly, but the records that do name her are meaningful. They place her in the Reed household before marriage, on Reed family land after marriage, and in Putney’s legal records as a wife, mother, sister, and landholder.

*Nancy Reed Glynn should not be confused with Nancy Lockwood, who married a different Joseph Glynn and lived in Windsor County, Vermont. The two couples are sometimes combined or confused in online family trees and other web-based sources.

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page, where I share each post and other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

“Calvin Read obituary,” Florida Republican (Jacksonville, Florida), 8 August 1850, digital image, OldNews (https://www.oldnews.com/en/record?record_id=record-11024-225493483&page_id=3 : accessed 13 June 2026). OldNews incorrectly indexed this issue as The Florida Republican, Jacksonville, Duval, Florida, 1 January 1848; the masthead identifies the paper as Florida Republican and gives the date as Thursday, 8 August 1850.

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/190058477/nancy-glynn: accessed July 2, 2026), memorial page for Nancy Reed Glynn (2 Aug 1798–2 Apr 1854), Find a Grave Memorial ID 190058477, citing Maple Grove Cemetery, Putney, Windham County, Vermont, USA; Maintained by dbquinn (contributor 47552132).

John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, vol. 1 (1901); digital image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/reedgenealogydes01reed/page/n11/mode/2up : accessed 18 April 2026).

“Mortuary Notice,” The Semi-Weekly Eagle (Brattleboro, Vermont), 27 September 1852, p. 3, for Caroline Almira Glynn; digital image, GenealogyBank  (https://www.genealogybank.com : accessed 2 July 2026).

The Vermont Gazette, February 4, 1876, Page  2. via Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-vermont-gazette-benjamin-reed-town/155440991/: accessed July 2, 2026), clip page for Benjamin Reed - Town Clerk from 1792 - 1803 by user dewquinn.

"United States, Census, 1820", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHLP-7XZ : accessed18 April 2026), Entry for Benjamin Read, 1820.

"United States, Census, 1850", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MC2N-4L1 : accessed 18 April 2026), Entry for Joseph Glynn and Nancy Glynn, 1850.

"Vermont, Vital Records, 1760-1954", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XFVW-SZY : accessed 18 April 2026), Entry for Nancy Glynn, 02 Apr 1854.

“U.S., Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900,” database and images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/49769:1995 : accessed 25 June 2022), for Benjamin Reed, images 266 to 320; citing "Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files" (NARA microfilm publication M804, 2,670 rolls). Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

"Vermont, Vital Records, 1760-1954", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XFVW-S4G : accessed 18 April 2026), Entry for Joseph F Glynn and Nancy Read, 19 Jan 1829.

"Vermont, Births and Christenings, 1765-1908", FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F825-54H : accessed 18 April 2026), Nancy in entry for Caroline Almira Glynn, 1829.

"Vermont, Births and Christenings, 1765-1908", FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8L6-CJS : accessed 18 April 2026), Nancy in entry for Henry Reed Glynn, 1833.

"Vermont, Births and Christenings, 1765-1908", FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8L6-CJH : accessed 18 April 2026), Nancy in entry for Joseph Albert Glynn, 1835.

"Windham, Vermont, United States records," images, FamilySearch (https://

www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89S9-F9FC-7?view=fullText : 18 Apri, 2026), image 80 of 198; Vermont. Supreme Court, probate mentioning minor children, and sister of Luther Read. 

"Windham, Vermont, United States records," images, FamilySearch (https:// www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9S9-FTN5?view=fullText : accessed 2 July 2026), image 270 of 301; Vermont, Supreme Court, guardianship, Hellen Read. 

Using AI to Give Names to the Tick Marks

John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, page 115

When looking for family members before 1850, I often analyze earlier census records — the ones with only heads of household and tick marks. My goal is to determine who could have been living in the household during those years.

By giving names to the tick marks, I can track children over time, identify gaps, uncover possible missing family members, and estimate birth years.

This is not a new process for me.

In an earlier project, I compared the 1830 census for the Bryan family with birth information from the Bryan family Bible transcript. In that case, I was trying to see whether another child could fit into the household. The census did not name each person, but the age and gender categories gave me a way to test the family structure.

I have also used this approach with my John Giddens family in Wayne County, North Carolina. The 1800 census showed John Giddens with a wife, six sons, and two daughters. Comparing the census categories with the known or suspected children helped me see who fit, who did not, and where the gaps might matter.

Usually, I sort the household members into census categories by making a handwritten table, using a spreadsheet, or even writing notes on a printed copy of the census. But last week, I tried something different. I used AI to help me organize the comparisons. 

I was working with Benjamin Reed and his wife, Huldah Pratt, of Woodford, Bennington County, Vermont. One source that has been especially helpful is John Ludovicus Reed’s The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts from 1635 to 1902. The clipped entry at the top of the page lists ten children for Benjamin Reed and Huldah Pratt.

That list was important to me because, until I found The Reed Genealogy, I did not know about four of the ten children named in the book. 

Of course, a published genealogy is not the final answer. It needs to be tested against other records whenever possible. For Benjamin Reed’s family, the 1790 and 1800 census records gave me one way to see whether the children named in The Reed Genealogy fit the household Benjamin Reed headed in Woodford, Vermont.

For these comparisons, my process was simple: I asked AI to check the Ancestry.com census transcriptions against the original images, use information found in The Reed Genealogy as a working family list, match likely household members to the census categories, and point out where the records fit or raised questions. In other words, AI was helping me follow the same process I use when I do this work by hand.

The 1790 census gave me my first test. Benjamin Reed’s household in Woodford included one male aged sixteen and over, three males under sixteen, and two females.

Most of that household fits the family described in The Reed Genealogy. Benjamin fits the adult male. Huldah Pratt Reed and her daughter Huldah fit as the two females. Several of the sons fit the male-under-sixteen category.

But there was one problem. Based on the children listed in The Reed Genealogy, I expected four males under sixteen: Benjamin Jr., John, Cyrus, and David. The census only counted three.

Table created with assistance from ChatGPT by comparing the 1790 census entry for Benjamin Reed with the family list in The Reed Genealogy. The comparison and conclusions were reviewed by the author.

That mismatch does not disprove the Reed genealogy entry. Census records are not perfect. A child may have been missed, be living elsewhere, or be temporarily away, or the household may have been reported or recorded incorrectly.

The 1800 census gave me a much cleaner comparison. By 1800, Benjamin Reed’s household in Woodford included nine people. When I compared those age categories with the children listed in the Reed genealogy, the younger children lined up very neatly.

Table created with assistance from ChatGPT by comparing the 1800 census entry for Benjamin Reed with the family list in The Reed Genealogy. The comparison and conclusions were reviewed by the author.

The two oldest sons, Benjamin Jr. and John, do not appear to be living in Benjamin Reed’s household in 1800, which makes sense, as they were about 19 or 20 years old.

The 1800 census does not prove the Reed genealogy entry on its own, but it fits the family group remarkably well. It also gives indirect support for family members who may not have left many records of their own. 

 AI did not prove that the published genealogy was correct. It did not replace the need to read the original census image. It did not solve the Reed family for me. However, it organized the information quickly. It helped calculate which children fit into each census category. It showed where the numbers matched and where they did not. What usually takes me well over an hour took only a few prompts. Both comparisons were useful, and AI saved me much time

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page, where I share each post and other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

1790 U.S. census, Bennington County, Vermont, population schedule, Woodford, p. 244, Benjn Reed household; digital image, Ancestry.com, “1790 United States Federal Census” (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/5058/ : accessed 2 June 2026); citing First Census of the United States, 1790, NARA microfilm publication M637, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

1800 U.S. census, Bennington County, Vermont, population schedule, Woodford, Benjamin Reed household; digital image, Ancestry.com, “1800 United States Federal Census” (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7590/ : accessed 2 June 2026); citing Second Census of the United States, 1800, NARA microfilm publication M32, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

1830 U.S. Census, Houston County, Georgia, population schedule, p.274, line 4, district or territory not named, Reddick Bryan; digital image, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/: accessed 8 March 2021); citing National Archives microfilm publication M19, roll 18.

John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, vol. 1 (1901); digital image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/reedgenealogydes01reed/page/n11/mode/2up : accessed 18 April 2026).

"United States Census, 1800," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRD-ZJR : accessed 15 January 2022), John Giddens, Wayne, North Carolina, United States; citing p. 856, NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 32; FHL microfilm 337,908.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: They Were Named Only Once — #16 Huldah, #17 Cyrus, and #18 Betsey

Among the children of Benjamin Reed and Huldah Pratt were three whose lives were brief enough that they left almost nothing behind. They did not marry, buy land, appear in many records, or leave descendants to remember them. Their names survive because a copy of the family Bible record was preserved in the family and later used, at least in part, by John Ludovicus Reed in The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, hereafter The Reed Genealogy.

Huldah, Cyrus, and Betsey were unknown to me until I found The Reed Genealogy. The strongest clue to Reed’s source appears in the entry for Mary E. Reed Roane, daughter of Luther and Jerusha Wilson Reed and granddaughter of Benjamin and Huldah. Reed wrote that Mrs. Roane had “a copy of the family Bible of Benjamin and Huldah (Pratt) Reed, with a list of their children.” That does not prove that the printed list was copied directly from that Bible copy, but it makes Mrs. Roane’s record the clearest known source behind the names of Benjamin and Huldah’s children.

The printed list also has the feel of information copied from an older family source. Several dates are uncertain or given as alternatives: Benjamin was born “Aug. 4, or 17”; John was born “July 20, or 21”; Huldah died “Dec. 13, 1813, or 1818”; Cyrus died “Oct. 14, or 19”; and Almira was born “Sept. 9, or 18.” Those uncertain readings suggest a difficult-to-read, possibly handwritten, record.

Huldah Reed

Huldah Reed, daughter of Benjamin Reed and Huldah Pratt, was said to have been born on 21 August 1783. She was the third child and first daughter. At that time, Benjamin and Huldah were living in Massachusetts, probably in Hampshire County. By the age of five, Huldah was living with her family in the rugged mountains of Bennington County, Vermont, in the sparsely populated town of Woodford.

The Reed family remained in Woodford until sometime between 1801 and 1807, when they moved to Wardsboro. By 1812, they were in Putney, where Benjamin and Huldah remained until their deaths. The Reed Genealogy gives the younger Huldah’s death as 13 December, either in 1813 or 1818. If she remained with her family, Putney is the most likely place of death, though I have not found a record that proves it. She would have been either thirty or thirty-five years old.

Cyrus Reed

Cyrus Reed was born on 24 October 1786, according to The Reed Genealogy. Based on the records I have found for Benjamin Reed, the family lived in Massachusetts until about 1788, placing Cyrus’s birth in Massachusetts.

Cyrus was seventeen years old when he died on either 14 or 19 October 1804. It is difficult to determine where his death may have occurred. Even if he was still with his family, they were moving from Woodford to nearby Wardsboro around that time, and I have not been able to pinpoint the exact date or even the year of the move.

Cyrus was probably still with his family in 1800. When I reconstructed Benjamin Reed’s household from the 1800 U.S. census, there was room for a son of Cyrus’s age. 

In the 1800 U.S. Census, Benjamin Reed’s household in Woodford included nine people. When I compared those age categories with the children listed in the Reed genealogy, the younger children lined up very neatly along with Benjamin and Huldah. The two oldest sons, Benjamin Jr. (age 20) and John (age 19) did not appear to be living with the family. 

Betsey Reed

Betsey Reed was born on 22 August 1791 and died on 9 March 1801. She was nine years old. If she remained with her family during those years, she was probably born in Woodford and died there before the family moved to Wardsboro.

For Huldah, Cyrus, and Betsey, this one published list is the only place I have found them named. They do not appear later as married adults, landowners, parents, or heads of households. Their lives have to be followed indirectly, through the movements of Benjamin and Huldah and through the few dates preserved beside their names.

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page, where I share each post and other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

Bennington County, Vermont, land records, 192, Benjamin Reed to James Greenslet, deed, 5 November 1806; “Bennington, Bennington, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLR-N9XB-9 : accessed 26 February 2025), image 403 of 803. Shows residency in Wardsboro. 

John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, vol. 1 (1901); digital image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/reedgenealogydes01reed/page/n11/mode/2up : accessed 18 April 2026).

Putney, Windham County, Vermont, town records, p. 579, Benjamin Reed to James Clay, deed, 23 April 1811, acknowledged and recorded 2 March 1812; “Putney, Windham, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSCM-6SS2-H : accessed 22 February 2025), image 309 of 719.

“U.S., Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900,” database and images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/49769:1995 : accessed 25 June 2022), for Benjamin Reed, images 266 to 320; citing "Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files" (NARA microfilm publication M804, 2,670 rolls). Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15. National Archives, Washington, D.C.

“United States, Census, 1800,” database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRQ-6XP : accessed 25 May 2026), entry for Benjamin Reed, 1800.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #13 Sarah Reed Hill and Her Granddaughter’s Memory of Benjamin Reed

Sarah Reed was born in Abington, Massachusetts, in 1757, married Joel Hill in Cummington, and later spent her final years in Vermont. At first, her life seems to survive only in scattered facts—birth, marriage, children, and death. But family memories passed down through her granddaughter make Sarah a much more interesting person in my search to identify the parents of her probable brother and my fourth-great-grandfather, Benjamin Reed.

Sarah Reed's Birth Record - 26 August 1757

Sarah was the daughter of Peter Reed and Lucy Hugens Reed. She was born on 26 August 1757. When Sarah was twenty-two years old, her father was said to have died on 18 February 1780. Cyril Nash wrote in his manuscript, “At the death of Peter his widow removed to the westward probably to Cummington, and Samuel to the same place, where she died.” Samuel was Sarah’s youngest brother and would have been 19 years old in 1780.

Nash did not mention Peter and Lucy’s daughters, Sarah and Joanna, in that passage. Still, his writings are important because they tell much about the families of Peter Reed and Benjamin Reed. Nash's writings were included in The Reed Genealogy: descendants of William Reade, of Weymouth, Mass., from 1635-1902, by John Ludovicus Reed. In this book, Benjamin was named a son of Peter.

On 21 October 1782, Sarah Reed married Joel Hill in Cummington, Massachusetts. That location did not surprise me. Lucy Reed was said to have moved west after Peter’s death. Sarah’s sister Joanna also married in Cummington. Benjamin Reed had been in Cummington before 1775. Sarah’s marriage there fits the movement of the family.

Over the next fifteen years, Sarah and Joel had six children: Samuel, Lucius, David, Sarah Jane called Sally, Electa, and Laura. Land records indicate that Joel and Sarah Hill remained in Massachusetts from the time of their marriage until about 1808. Before moving to Vermont, they lived in Rowe, near the Massachusetts–Vermont line. Their first home in Vermont was Marlboro in Windham County, a short distance from Rowe.

Later records place Joel and members of the family in Marlboro, Jamaica, and Dummerston. Joel died in Dummerston in 1843 and is buried there. Sarah is said to have died earlier, on 29 December 1836.

Sarah’s children help trace the family’s Vermont story. They remained in Windham County and married into other Windham County families, including Church, Blake, Phillips, Rawson, and Brown families. But the most interesting part of Sarah’s story comes from her granddaughter's memories, preserved in The Reed Genealogy.

In The Reed Genealogy, John Ludovicus Reed wrote that Sarah’s granddaughter, Mrs. John V. Evans of West Dummerston, remembered Sarah well. She also remembered Sarah’s brother Benjamin. Mrs. Evans said that Sarah had lived for a time with Dr. Braddish’s family in Bridgewater and was in Bridgewater on the Dark Day, 19 May 1780. While living in Vermont, Sarah often spoke of Abington, Bridgewater, Plainfield, Cummington, and Milford. She must have spoken of those places often enough that her granddaughter carried the memories into old age.

That granddaughter was Louisa Emeline Hill, later Mrs. John V. Evans. Louisa was born in 1816 and is identified in The Reed Genealogy as Sarah’s granddaughter, not her daughter. Some family trees list Louisa as Sarah Reed Hill’s daughter, but the records found so far indicate she was probably Sarah’s granddaughter.*

Louisa’s memories are especially valuable because they connect Sarah Reed Hill’s family directly to Benjamin Reed’s household. In 1898, Mrs. Evans remembered visiting Benjamin Reed’s old house and said she knew Benjamin and Huldah well. She described them as "fine people, of good character, and well beloved by all who knew them."

Almira Reed
East Putney Cemetery

Mrs. Evans also remembered Benjamin and Huldah’s daughter Almira, who died in 1835, and said she was with Almira at the time of her death. That detail is worth noticing. Benjamin had died six months earlier. Deed records indicate that Sarah and her family were living in Jamaica, Vermont, a full day's journey by wagon or coach. Louisa’s presence with Almira suggests that the two families were still closely connected.

Sarah Reed Hill did not leave a record trail that tells her whole story. But through her granddaughter’s recollections, she becomes more than a name in the Reed family.

* Louisa Emeline Hill’s exact parentage needs further documentation. The Reed Genealogy identifies her as Sarah Reed Hill’s granddaughter. Lucius Hill named Louisa Emeline Hill as his niece in his will, and census and deed records show a continued association between Sally Hill and Louisa.

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page, where I share each post along with other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

“Abington, Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L979-W74D?view=fullText

 : accessed 30 April 2025), image 7 of 152, birth entry for Sarah Reed; Image Group Number 007009636; citing Abington, Massachusetts, Town Clerk.

“Abington, Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-9979-W7G7?view=fullText

 : accessed 7 January 2025), image 11 of 152, birth entry for Samuel Reed; citing Abington, Massachusetts, Town Clerk.

C. McClellan & Co. and J. Chace, McClellan’s Map of Windham County, Vermont (Philadelphia: C. McClellan & Co.; lithographed by W. H. Rease, 1856), map, digital image, Library of Congress (https://www.loc.gov/item/2012586226/ : accessed 18 April 2026).

Ephraim H. Newton, The History of the Town of Marlborough, Windham County, Vermont, with introduction by John Clement (Montpelier: Vermont Historical Society, 1930); digital images, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/historyoftownofm00newt/page/n9/mode/2up

 : accessed 18 April 2026).

Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27499359/almira-read: accessed 4 July 2022), memorial page for Almira Read, Find a Grave Memorial ID 27499357, citing East Putney Cemetery, East Putney, Windham County, Vermont; memorial maintained by Cynthia Kaley, contributor 51056978; gravestone photograph by Donna G. Dunham, contributor 46871624.

“Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSVR-832H-W?view=fullText

 : accessed 14 March 2026), image 456 of 562; Image Group Number 008131623; citing Massachusetts, Court of Common Pleas, Hampshire County.

“Jamaica, Windham, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8999-VWT4?view=fullText : accessed 9 May 2025), image 281 of 568, page 517 marriage of Luther Rawson and Electra Reed; Image Group Number 005463989; citing Jamaica, Vermont, Town Clerk.

“Jamaica, Windham, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8999-V4MD?view=fullText

 : accessed 9 May 2025), image 287 of 568, page 526 marriage of Laura Hill and Timothy Brown; Image Group Number 005463989; citing Jamaica, Vermont, Town Clerk.

“Jamaica, Windham, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C37V-T9V2-C?view=fullText

 : accessed 22 February 2025), image 295 of 546, deed involving Joel Hill, Louisa Hill, and Sally Hill, 1839; original source not identified in supplied FamilySearch citation.

John Ludovicus Reed, The Reed Genealogy: Descendants of William Reade of Weymouth, Massachusetts, from 1635–1902, vol. 1 ([no place]: [no publisher], 1901); digital image, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/reedgenealogydes01reed/page/n11/mode/2up

 : accessed 18 April 2026).

“Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626–2001,” database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH5P-Z7B

 : accessed 22 January 2025), entry for Joel Hill and Sarah Reed, marriage, 21 October 1782, Cummington, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, page 2.

“Massachusetts, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9Z8-28QY?view=fullText

 : accessed 5 June 2024), image 178 of 715; citing Massachusetts, County Court, Hampshire County.

1860 U.S. census, Windham County, Vermont, population schedule, Jamaica, page 15, John V. Evans family; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7667/images/4297354_00151: accessed 18 April 2026); citing NARA microfilm publication M653, Eighth Census of the United States, 1860.

1870 U.S. census, Windham County, Vermont, population schedule, Jamaica, page 46, John V. Evans family; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/7163/records/40457539: accessed 18 April 2026); citing NARA microfilm publication M593, Ninth Census of the United States, 1870.

“Vermont, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1732–2005,” database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPQ5-L9ZX: accessed 8 March 2024), entry for Joel Hill, death, 2 March 1843, Dummerston, Windham County, Vermont.

“Windham, Vermont, United States records,” digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9BH-G349-7?view=fullText

 : accessed 6 May 2025), image 599 of 643, will of Lucas Hill; Image Group Number 007714786; original source not identified in supplied FamilySearch citation.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #9 Joanna Reed, Daughter of Peter and Lucy

Baptism of Joanna Reed, 25 Dec. 1763

Joanna Reed was born on 8 September 1763 in Abington or Bridgewater (records vary) and was baptized in Bridgewater, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, on 25 December 1763. She was the daughter of Peter Reed and Lucy Hugens.

Hill Top Cemetery, Plainfield, MA

Her life can be traced from Plymouth County to Cummington and later to Plainfield, both in Hampshire County. Charles N. Dyer, in his History of the Town of Plainfield, Hampshire County, Mass., wrote that many of Plainfield’s early settlers moved west from Abington, Bridgewater, and Weymouth. Joanna’s path seems to fit that pattern, although I do not know when she left Plymouth County.

Joanna is believed to have been the sister of my fourth-great-grandfather, Benjamin Reed. Benjamin was in Cummington before the Revolutionary War. When their father, Peter Reed, died in 1780, it was said that his widow, Lucy, moved to Cummington. Did Joanna go to Cummington with her mother, or was she already in Hampshire County by that time?

On 14 April 1788, a marriage intention was recorded in Cummington for Joanna Reed and Jacob Nash, and they were married there on 27 November 1788.  Jacob Nash was born in Weymouth in 1760 and came to Plainfield soon after the close of the Revolutionary War. Dyer noted in his book that the Jacob Nash home was still standing in 1891.

Joanna and Jacob had five known children: 

Sibyl, born 19 August 1789 

Arvin, born 19 November 1790 

Roxanna, born 22 August 1792 

Eunice, born 30 April 1795 

Mandana, born 19 January 1800

The family remained closely tied to Plainfield and the surrounding area. Joanna died on 8 September 1849 in Plainfield, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, on her eighty-sixth birthday, and was buried there.

If you would like to learn more about the families I research, follow my Facebook page , where I share each post along with other genealogical finds.

Diana

© 2026

“Amherst, Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G979-927F?view=fullText  : accessed 13 March 2026), image 505 of 562; Amherst (Massachusetts), death of Sibyl Nash, showing mother’s birthplace as Bridgewater; Image Group Number 007009211.

Charles N. Dyer, History of the Town of Plainfield, Hampshire County, Mass., from Its Settlement to 1891, Including a Genealogical History of Twenty Three of the Original Settlers and Their Descendants, with Anecdotes and Sketches (Northampton, Massachusetts: Press of Gazette Printing Co., 1891), digital images, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/historyoftownofp01dyer/page/n13/mode/2up  : accessed 13 February 2026).

“Cummington, Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8979-H9YZ?view=fullText  : accessed 5 March 2026), image 134 of 162; Cummington (Massachusetts) marriage of Joanna Reed and Jacob Nash; Image Group Number 007009226.

“Find a Grave,” database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/64880706/jacob-nash  : accessed 13 March 2026), memorial for Joanna Nash, Find a Grave Memorial ID 64880706; citing Hill Top Cemetery, Plainfield, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA; maintained by Anonymous. 

First Parish Congregational Church (North Bridgewater, Massachusetts), baptism of Joanna Reed, dau. of Peter Reed, 25 Dec. 1763; digital image, Congregational Library & Archives Digital Collections (https://congregationallibrary.quartexcollections.com/Documents/Detail/church-records-1740-1805-first-parish-congregational-church-in-north-bridgewater/5618?item=5679

 : accessed 9 March 2026).

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

“Plainfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-P3X5-MR9N?view=fullText  : accessed 5 March 2026), image 30 of 67; marriage intention of Jacob Nash and Joanna Reed; Image Group Number 107028903.

“Plainfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-L3X5-M5DJ?view=fullText  : accessed 6 March 2026), image 35 of 46; Image Group Number 107028906; death record for Joanna Reed.

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).