Friday's Photo: Joseph Thomas "Tom" Page and his wife, Dora Davis Page

 Joseph Thomas "Tom" Page and his wife, Dora Davis Page

Dora Davis Page was the sister of my great-grandmother, Bertha Davis Hawkins. Her mother was Olive Caroline Davis, the daughter of Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy" Jones. Her father is not known. Dora was born in Edmonson County, Kentucky where she married Joseph Thomas Page at age 13. Tom Page was born in Hart County. During their marriage, Tom and Dora lived in Edmonson, Barren, and Hardin Counties. 

Obituary for Joseph Thomas Page (Aged 80) Tue, May 9, 1939 – Page 17 · The Courier-Journal (Louisville, Kentucky) · Newspapers.com  

 

Obituary for Dora A. Page Mon, Jun 9, 1975 – 8 · The Reporter-Times (Martinsville, Indiana) · Newspapers.com

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

© 2020 

Sources 

Tom and Dora Page. Photograph, ca. 1926. Privately held by E. M. Bryan [ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE,] Virginia Beach, Virginia. 

"Deaths." The Courier-Journal 169, no.25,696 (1939): 17. Newspapers.com.

"Mrs. Dora Page dies Sunday in local hospital." The Reporter-Times, no.136 (1975): 8. Newspapers.com.

Claude Louis Davis - Born 127 Years Ago Today

Claude Louis Davis  1893 - 1967

The U.S.S. Franklin was a training ship at the Commanding Naval
Training Station in Norfolk, VA. The ship was decommissioned and
sold on October 14, 1915. This photo was said to have been taken soon
after Claude got over the measles. According to historical records,
there was a measles outbreak at the Norfolk Commanding Naval
Training Station in 1915. 

My grandfather, Claude Louis Davis, was born September 28, 1893 in City Hospital, Louisville, Kentucky - 127 years ago today. His mother, Bertha Davis, was young and unmarried. At age six months he may have been given to Isaac Smith and, his wife, Nancy Jane Saunders, for care. 

Claude's mother, Bertha Davis, was the daughter of Olive Caroline Davis. Her father is unknown. Bertha's grandparents were Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy" Jones, both of Edmonson County. The Smith family was somewhat connected to Claude’s family as Bertha’s first cousin, George Page, was married to Nancy Jane’s sister, Clara.

Friday's Photo: Claude L. Davis

Unknown year - Claude Davis had red hair and blue eyes. 

This is for Aunt Dora Page is written on the
back. Dora Page is Betha Davis' sister. 

 This is the earliest photo I have of my grandfather, Claude Louis Davis. He was born in City Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky on September 28, 1893. He had a complicated childhood. His mother was very young and his father is not known. 

His mother, Bertha Davis, was born in Edmonson County, Kentucky. She was the daughter of Olive Caroline Davis and the granddaughter of Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy" Jones. 

As a young child, it doesn't appear he lived with his mother as he was found as Claude D. Smith on the 1900 census living as the adopted son of Isaac Jefferson Smith and Nancy J. Sanders Smith in Coldbrook, Warren County, Illinois.

Isaac and Nancy were both from Edmonson County. Nancy, age 30 in 1900, was the daughter of Benjamin Sanders and Mary J. Smith Sanders. Isaac, a 32-year-old day laborer, was the son of John Smith and Celia Whittle Smith.  Isaac and Nancy were married in Edmonson County in 1890. On the 1900 census record, it was reported Nancy had given birth to one child who had died.  

In November 1905, C. L. Smith was presented with a book "from a friend" and in it was written, C. L. Smith Elko, KY.  Claude would have been 12 years old. This book, on my bookshelf, is only one of a few pieces of evidence showing my grandfather's surname as Smith. 

In 1910, Isaac and Nancy were living in the Parker community in Edmonson County along with a four-year-old son, Walter. A 16-year-old Claude Smith lived nearby as a lodger with the Robert Page family.  At the time of the census, Claude's mother was Bertha Cooksey, a widow living in Louisville. A few months later she married Frank Hawkins.  

Little else is known about my grandfather's childhood. Did he know his birth mother as a child? When did he decide to use the name Davis instead of Smith? It is said he joined the Navy soon after his mother remarried. Did he go in as Smith or Davis? 

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

© 2018

Sources

Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.

Family photographs and documents from the collection of Diana Bryan Quinn

Documenting My Davis Family: Nancy Ellen Davis

Courtesy of Michael Mann, Quincy, IL

Nancy Ellen Davis, was a daughter of Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy " Jones and sister to my great-great-grandmother, Olive Caroline Davis.  She was born August 22, 1844. At age 19, she married Henry Page in Edmonson County. In 1870  Nancy and her husband lived in Hardinsburg, Breckinridge Kentucky with son George, age 2.

In 1880, they continued to live in Breckinridge County with son George, then age 11. Henry Page was working as a teamster.

In 1900, Nancy Ellen "Ellen" was living very near her brother, Larkin Davis, in Rocky Hill Station, Edmonson County. Her marital status was divorced and she reported that she was the mother of two children and only one was living.  Her son, George, and his wife, Clara Saunders, were living in Warren County, Illinois and working as servants

In 1910, Henry and Nancy Ellen were living together - their status was married. Again, it was reported that Nancy Ellen was the mother of two children, but only one was living. Her son, George, and his family were living in Galesburg, Knox County, Illinois. 

Courtesy of
Michael Mann, Quincy, IL

On February 24, 1912, Nancy Ellen and Henry moved to the Illinois Soldiers and Sailors home in Adams County. They remained in that home until their deaths; Henry in 1917 and Nancy Ellen in 1932. They are buried in Sunset Cemetery in Adams County, Illinois.

One very interesting item was found while looking for Nancy Ellen and her family. A death certificate for a Virgil L. Page, who died August 2, 1937,  names Henry Page and Ellen Davis as his parents. Virgil was born on November 11, 1875 and was not living with Henry and Nancy Ellen in 1880. He would have been four at the time of the census. Remember that Nancy Ellen was reported as to having 2 children with only one living in both 1910 and 1900. The living child would have been her son George W. Page. However, Virgil was also living. Was Virgil an adopted son? Could he be "Virgia," the son who was living with Olive Caroline on the 1880 census? 


Diana

© 2013

______________________________________________________________

Sources

Ancestry.com. Kentucky, Death Records, 1852-1953 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.

Ancestry.com. Illinois, Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.
Original data: "Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths, 1916–1947." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2010. Index entries derived from digital copies of original records.

Edmonson County Marriages (n.d.). Edmonson County Marriages. Retrieved November 23, 2013, from http://www.kygenweb.org/edmonson/marriages/bd.html

Find A Grave (n.d.). Retrieved November 21, 2013, from http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=1620743

Illinois State Archives. (n.d.).  Retrieved November 23, 2013, from http://www.ilsos.gov/isaveterans/soldSailSearch.do

Year: 1870; Census Place: Hardinsburg, Breckinridge, Kentucky; Roll: M593_450; Page: 88B; Image: 180; Family History Library Film: 545949.

Year: 1880; Census Place: Cloverport, Breckinridge, Kentucky; Roll: 405; Family History Film: 1254405; Page: 47D; Enumeration District: 020; Image: 0200.

Year: 1880; Census Place: Edmonson, Kentucky; Roll: 412; Family History Film: 1254412; Page: 569C; Enumeration District: 042.

Year: 1900; Census Place: Coldbrook, Warren, Illinois; Roll: 350; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0083; FHL microfilm: 1240350.

Year: 1900; Census Place: Rocky Hill Station, Edmonson, Kentucky; Roll: 518; Page: 14A; Enumeration District: 0035; FHL microfilm: 1240518.

Year: 1910; Census Place: Galesburg, Knox, Illinois; Roll: T624_299; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0148; FHL microfilm: 1374312.

Year: 1910; Census Place: Parker, Edmonson, Kentucky; Roll: T624_469; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 0044; FHL microfilm: 1374482.

Friday's Photo: Dora Davis Page

I love this picture of Dora Davis, sister to my great-grandmother, Bertha Davis. Dora, daughter of Olive Caroline Davis, was born on January 9, 1882 in Kentucky. Her mother was unmarried and her father was said to be a Charles Thompson. Dora married Joseph Thomas Page on August 29, 1895 in Edmonson County, Kentucky. They had children Hattie Mae, Fred Bryon, Olive Allena, and Albert Scott.

Dora died on June 8, 1975 in Indiana. She is buried with her husband in Lambert Cemetery in Edmonson County. 

Diana

© 2013

Documenting My Davis Family: A Genealogical Challenge

This Davis family picture was taken in 1926 when my grandfather(center) was home for a visit.
To see a picture with some family identified, click here. 

My Davis family is a challenge, but I haven't given up and am gradually being rewarded with new bits and pieces of information. I have decided to share my Davis research on this blog during the next few weeks to pass along the information found to other family members and also with hope that currently unknown Davis family members will find this blog and share additional information. 

My grandfather was Claude Louis Davis from Edmonson County, Kentucky. I was told that his name was first Claude Smith and when he learned the identity of his real father, he changed his name to his mother's maiden name of Davis.

Claude's mother, Bertha Davis, was 14 years old and unmarried when he was born. A census search for her family revealed that she was the daughter of Olive Caroline Davis, an unmarried woman, in Edmonson County with two children in 1880.  Olive Caroline Davis was the daughter of Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy" Jones who married September 29, 1843.

Can you see my challenges? 

• Davis, Jones, and Smith are extremely common surnames - all listed within the top 10 surnames in the 1990, 2000, and 2010 U. S. Census records. And, believe me, there were plenty Davis, Jones, and Smith families in Edmonson and the surrounding counties. 

• Women are difficult to research, but you can usually hope to find them paired with husbands in marriage and land records. Women without husbands, and especially those without money, leave no trail.

In addition to the above challenges, some Davis family members appear to be nonexistent in census records, there are very few researchers looking for this family, and I don't have background knowledge of this family; few family stories, no bible records, no obituaries and only a few photos.

During the next few weeks, I will post my photos and found information about this Davis family along with questions that I would like to answer. If you have photos or additional facts, please contact me. 

Diana

© 2013

______________________________________________________________

Sources

"Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2010 - U. S. Census Bureau" Census Bureau Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2013.  https://census.demo.socrata.com/dataset/Frequently-Occurring-Surnames-from-Census-2010/uqzf-9yai

"Genealogy - Data - Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000 - U.S. Census Bureau." Census Bureau Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2013.  http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/data/2000surnames/

Year: 1880; Census Place: Edmonson, Kentucky; Roll: 412; Family History Film: 1254412; Page: 569C; Enumeration District: 042.

Friday's Photo: Bertha Davis

Bertha M. Davis 1879-1965

Bertha M. Davis was my great-grandmother. She was the mother of my grandfather, Claude Davis. 

Bertha, born on May 29, 1879, was the daughter of Olive Caroline Davis. Her father is unknown. Her mother's parents were Seth H. Davis and Margaret "Peggy" Jones of Edmonson County, Kentucky. It is assumed that Bertha was born in Edmonson County.  

According to the 1880 census of Edmonson County, Bertha had a brother, Virgia (possibly Virgil).  The family was living with a Sanders family where Olive worked as a housekeeper. Bertha's sister, Dora, who married a Tom Page, was born in 1882. 

Bertha married George Cooksey on January 22, 1902 in Barren County, Kentucky and in 1910 she was listed as a boarder living in the home of William and Rebecca Hawkins of Jefferson County, Kentucky. Her marital status was widow and she was working as a wrapper in a tobacco factory.  

On July 25, 1910, in Jefferson County,  Bertha married Frank Hawkins, brother to William Hawkins. Frank was a widower and had a three year old child, Carrie, at the time of their marriage.  Bertha and Frank resided in Elizabethtown in Hardin County, Kentucky for at least 45 years. 

Bertha was married to Frank until her death on December 28, 1965.   Frank died in 1977.  They are buried in the Elizabethtown City Cemetery. 

There are a lot of unknown facts about my Davis family. Bertha was 14 years old and unmarried when my grandfather was born in 1893. Both my grandfather's mother's father and his father are unknown. 

Look for more posts about this family. If you haven't "liked" my newest Facebook page, please do so as notices about Davis family posts will come from my Moments in Time Facebook page.

Diana

© 2013

______________________________________________________________

Sources

Bertha Davis, death certificate no. 6529897 (1965), Registrar of Vital Statistics, Commonwealth of Kentucky – Frankfurt, Kentucky.

Bertha Davis and George Cooksey, marriage certificate, Book 34, Page 1980, Office of the Clerk of Barren County, Kentucky. 

Bertha M. Hawkins (1897 - 1965) - Find A Grave Memorial." Find A Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Aug. 2013. < http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=HAW&GSpartial=1&GSbyrel=all&GSst=19&GScntry=4&GSsr=521&GRid=10002>

Kentucky, Marriages, 1785-1979, Index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/FWP4-N8M : accessed 16 Aug 2013), Frank Hawkins and Bertha Cooksly, 25 Jul 1910.

Year: 1880; Census Place: Edmonson, Kentucky; Roll: 412; Family History Film: 1254412; Page: 569C; Enumeration District: 042

Year: 1910; Census Place: Louisville Ward 9, Jefferson, Kentucky; Roll: T624_486; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0153; FHL microfilm: 1374499.