52 Ancestors: #30, Mysterious Mary, Part 3: Mary (Murphy) Bowlen Green Bamber – GGG Aunt?

This is the conclusion of the tale of Mysterious Mary. If you haven't read the first two parts yet, you can find them at:
Mysterious Mary, Part 1: Mary (Campbell) Bowlen – Unrelated Stranger?
Mysterious Mary, Part 2: Mary (Campbell) Bowlen Green – Still Unrelated?

I feel just a bit guilty, getting three posts out of one person who is at most a collateral relative (and may not be my relative at all). But she did have three husbands, after all, and her history is complicated enough, I think, to warrant three posts. In any case, if I had tried to do it all in one post, I'd be several weeks behind by now on my 52 Ancestors challenge!

At the end of part 2, we left Mary A. Greene in 1896, still ensconced in her not-always-empty nest at 41 Market Street; close inspection of the Newburyport city directories reveals "Benj. M. Roward" (daughter Sarah's husband Benjamin M. Rowand) boarding at 41 Market in 1882,¹ and William F. Decie (daughter Mary's husband) in 1896.²

Which brings us up to 1898 when, on New Year's Day in Lynn, Massachusetts, one Samuel Bamber of Lynn married one Mary A (Murphy) Green of Newburyport. He was 56, born in England, and an (insurance) agent, and this was his second marriage. She was allegedly 60, born in P.E.I, and ostensibly a doctor (!), and this was her third marriage. And – crucially – her parents are given as Michael [Murphy] and Martha (Morrison).³

Marriage record of Samuel Bamber and Mary A. (Murphy) Green, 1 Jan 1898, Lynn, Mass.

Now, it would be easy to dismiss this Mary A. (Murphy) Green as, indeed, a different woman than the widow of Daniel W. Green: not only does she claim a completely different set of parents and maiden name, but she's apparently 5-9 years younger, and we certainly haven't seen any evidence that Mary (Campbell) Green was a doctor (she is not, for example, listed under "Physicians" in the city directory). But further evidence demonstrates that Samuel Bamber's second wife is, in fact, the widow of George Bowlen and Daniel W. Green.

First, there are the Newburyport city directory listings. The last time Mary A. Greene "widow of Daniel W." appears in the directory was 1896, at the same 41 Market Street address where Daniel, and later Mary, had been for over 20 years. Samuel Bamber makes his first appearance in the 1898 directory – at 41 Market Street.⁴

Newburyport city directory, 1898: Samuel Bamber at 41 Market (top), no Mary A. Greene (bottom)

Next, we have the 1900 census. Samuel Bamber, 58, is head of household at 41 Market Street. His wife Mary gives a birth date of Aug 1936 (which is consistent with her given age in the marriage record) and a birthplace of Nova Scotia (which is not, but she seems to routinely flip-flop between P.E.I. and Nova Scotia). Significantly, she reports having had 7 children, with 4 now living: that fits with Mary (Campbell) Bowlen Green's children (George, Albert, Edward, and Annabell Bowlen, and Sarah, Idela, and Mary Green; Albert and Idela died as infants, and George died in 1884, leaving Edward, Annabell, Sarah, and Mary).⁵

1900 U.S. census, Newburyport, Mass., Samuel Bamber household

But the most significant information in the census is the rest of the household: daughter Marie and son-in-law William F. Decie with their daughter Viola G., and granddaughter Gretchen "Farina" (daughter of Annabell Bowlen and Nicholas B. Varina). (Of course, the relationships given actual apply to Mary, not to head-of-household Samuel.) These clear links to both of her previous marriages show that the Mary (Murphy) Green who married Samuel Bamber is indeed the Mary "Campbell" who married George Bowlen and Daniel W. Green.

According to the city directories, Samuel Bamber continued to reside at 41 Market St. through 1906. There is no Bamber listed in 1908, and starting in 1910, Mrs. Mary A. Bamber is listed at that address.⁶ I have found no death record in Massachusetts for Samuel, but I did find one clue to where he might have disappeared. On 9 May 1907, the Cunard liner Ivernia arrived at Liverpool, England, and one of the passengers who had embarked at Boston was one Saml Bamber, agent, age 65, nationality USA.⁷ (According to the 1900 census, he had been naturalized.) Not definitive by any means, but it at least raises the possibility that he had returned to his native country and died there.

Excerpt of passenger list of Iberia, 9 May 1907 arrival at Liverpool

... And apparently he had died, according to the 1910 census. William Decie is now head of household at 41 Market Street (the sequence of house numbers runs 39, 43, 43, 45 – the first 43 should be 41), with Mary A. Bamber, 75, widow, noted as "mother-in-law." Her birthplace is now the non-specific "Canada-English," neatly sidestepping the question of P.E.I. vs. Nova Scotia.⁸

1910 U.S. census, Newburyport, Mass., W. William Decie household

Mary A. Bamber died July 18, 1918, of mitral insufficiency, and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Newburyport. According to the death certificate, she was born Aug. 5, 1832, in Georgetown, P.E.I. As if her parentage was not already confused enough, here her parents are reportedly William Murphy and Mary A. Campbell.⁹

Death certificate for Mary A. (Green) Bamber, 18 Jul 1918, Newburyport

The informant is Mrs. Benjamin Varina – that would be her daughter Annabell (Nicholas sometimes used his middle name Benjamin) – and I suspect she dredged up some names out of memory that she thought might have been Mary's parents. It appears she confused the name Mary had used when she married Annabell's father for Mary's mother. Where did the name William come from for her father? Hard to say, but if Mary is in fact my GGG aunt, then her brother William (my GG grandfather) had lived in Newburyport from about 1904 until his death in 1909, and Annabell may have mistakenly believed that was her grandfather's name as well.

So, is Mary my great-great-grand aunt? Which of the names and parents and ages and birthplaces are we to believe?

First, her birthplace. I'm inclined to believe she really was from Prince Edward Island, despite her alternating claims of a Nova Scotia origin. She twice reported the even more specific Georgetown, P.E.I., birthplace (also repeated on her death certificate), but never gave a specific location in Nova Scotia. P.E.I. is a small island and at the time was probably much less well known to U.S. residents than Nova Scotia. Perhaps she simply found it easier at times to say she was from Nova Scotia instead of explaining where Prince Edward Island was. Also, her first husband, George Bowlen, was from Nova Scotia. Why would she have claimed P.E.I. as her birthplace in their marriage registration if she was actually from her husband's province? And why include the detail of Georgetown, when George didn't bother to get any more specific?

Next, her age/date of birth. Again, I'm inclined to believe her initial claim to be 24 when she married in 1853, implying a birth year of 1828-1829. This was corroborated two years later in the 1855 state census, when she reported being 26. This is the oldest Mary ever claimed to be, and was a year older than George. It seems hardly likely that a young woman of that time would admit to being older than her husband by even a year, unless it was true. If any of her later age claims were correct, she would have been no more than 20 in 1853; if she had wanted to appear a little more mature, she would most likely have claimed 21 or 22 to George's 23. After George's death, her progressively increasing under-reporting of her age is understandable when you compare her probable age to that of her subsequent husbands: Daniel's age in 1860 (when they presumably married) would have been 24 to Mary's probable 31, while Samuel Bamber was 56 and Mary was probably 68 when they were married in 1898! Small wonder if Mary was inclined to hack 3 to 8 years off her age.

Finally there is the matter of her parents and maiden name. Here I'm rather stumped. I can think of no plausible reason why she might claim to be a Campbell from her first marriage in 1853 through at least 1870 (daughter Mary's birth record), and then announce that she was a Murphy when she married Samuel in 1898. The fact that Annabell reported Mary's maiden name to be Murphy for her death certificate indicates that the marriage record wasn't just a fluke, a made-up name to go with the (presumably) made-up occupation of doctor; it would seem that Mary must have given Annabell reason to believe that she was a Murphy. Perhaps – and this is sheer speculation – the presence in Newburyport in the late 1800s of numerous other members of the Murphy clan led Mary to acknowledge her true identity and kinship with those other Murphys. But if so, what was she hiding when she told George Bowlen her name was Campbell? I will probably never know.

The fact remains that, on the one hand, I can find no record of a "George and Martha Campbell" in P.E.I., while, on the other hand, I do have records of a Michael Murphy and Magdelen Morrison (my GGG grandparents) having kids in exactly the right time frame. I'm not too concerned about the discrepancy of Magdelen's first name; one of their children's baptismal records reads Matilda, and records of the other children (known and tentative) variously say Martha or Margaret. The common link is always the unique combination of Michael Murphy and M___ Morrison, and it doesn't seem likely that Mary would have pulled a relatively uncommon surname like Morrison out of thin air. It's also easy to see how a first name might mutate when recalled by descendants who had never know the grandmother whose name they were reporting on a death certificate (Magdelen > Maggie > Margaret > Mattie > Martha > Matilda).

For now, Mary (Murphy?) Bowlen Green Bamber will remain marked as "tentative" in my family tree – but on the whole, I am inclined to believe that she is my great-great-grand aunt, who inexplicably presented herself as a Campbell between the ages of 24-40.

(Note: This post is in response to Amy Johnson Crow's "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge at No Story Too Small.)

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SOURCES

1. The Newburyport Directory, 1882... (Boston: Sampson, Davenport, & Co., 1882), p.111, entry for Benj. M. Roward; database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 20 Jul 2014). 
2. The Newburyport and Amesbury Directory, 1896... (Boston: Sampson, Murdock, & Co. 1896), p. 57, entry for William F. Decie; database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 26 Apr 2014). 
3. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," database and digital images, New England Historic Genealogical Society, American Ancestors (http://www.americanancestors.org : accessed 14 Feb 2014), Newburyport, Essex, Mass., vol. 478, p. 403, marriage of Samuel Bamber and Mary A. Green, 1898; citing “original records held by the Massachusetts Archives”. That "second marriage" for Bamber is suspect; the record of his 1892 marriage – identifiable as the same Samuel Bamber from his parents' names – indicates that that was his second marriage (ibid., Methuen, Essex, Mass., vol. 424, p. 454, marriage of Samuel Bamber and Alice (Hartley) Fitton, 1892). Perhaps he had a previous wife in England.
4. The Newburyport and Amesbury Directory, 1898... (Boston: Sampson, Murdock, & Co. 1898), p. 30, entry for Samuel Bamber (accessed 26 Apr 2014), p. 75, no entry for Mary A. Greene (accessed 18 July 2014). 
5. 1900 U.S. Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport, ED 421, sheet 8-B, dwelling 171, family 191, Samuel Bamber household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 18 Feb 2014).
6. The Newburyport and Amesbury Directory, [year]... (Boston: Sampson, Murdock, & Co. 1900-1916), entries for Samuel Bamber (1900, 1902, 1904, 1906), for Mrs. Mary A. Bamber (1910, 1912, 1914, 1916); no entry for Bamber in 1908 (accessed 26 Apr 2014).
7. "UK, Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960," database and digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 18 Jul 2014), entry for Saml Bamber, age 65, arrived Liverpool, England, 9 May 1907, aboard the Ivernia. 
8. 1910 U.S. Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport, ED 434, sheet 7-A, dwelling 163, family 173, W. William Decie household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 18 Feb 2014). 
9. "Massachusetts, State Vital Records, 1841-1920," database and digital images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 19 Jul 2014), Newburyport, death certificate #220 (registered #152), Mary A. (Green) Bamber, 18 Jul 1918.

FamilySearch Worldwide Indexing Event – Did You Participate?

Yesterday and today, FamilySearch held its second Worldwide Indexing Event, with a goal of at least 50,000 indexers and arbitrators submitting at least one batch each over a 24-hour period. Randy Seaver on Genea-Musings says they well surpassed their goal, with more than 60,000 participants.

I'm happy to report that I was able to contribute six batches to the U.S. Passport Applications project, for a total of 20 records. It was an intermediate-level project that counted 3 points for each record. Nothing too strenuous – a couple of illegible names or places were the only glitches.

This wasn't my first foray into indexing. Last year I did a number of batches totalling 199 records on three separate projects. Then there was a spell when I couldn't find any active projects that interested me (I'm partial to Maine, New Hampshire, and English-speaking Canada), so I hadn't done any for some time (none since the first of this year, in fact). Maybe now I'll get back into indexing a little more regularly.

I tend to find some of the indexing "rules" slightly frustrating, particularly the one that says you only enter a gender when it's explicitly stated or can be deduced from language such as specific pronouns (he/she) or references to husband or wife. You're explicitly instructed not to make assumptions based on the individual's name. OK, I can see that for gender-ambiguous names such as Chris or Leslie... but it seems like it would be hard to go wrong with names like William, Roger, Kathleen, etc. (And yes, I know there are exceptions like actress Michael Learned.) Nevertheless, I followed the rules, and refrained from entering M or F based solely on the name.

Another field instruction in this set I just found a bit odd: for the "event date" you were instructed to enter the most recent year found on the application (as long as it wasn't the applicant's date of birth). In the case of these records, the actual application dates (when the forms were signed and stamped as received) were all in late December of 1919, but nearly all of them stated that they were expecting to travel out of the country in January of 1920. So according to the instructions, 1920 should be entered for the "event date," and that's what I recorded. But I can't help but feel that's a little misleading; to my mind, the "event date" for a passport application should be, well, the date of the application itself. I'm still waiting to see whether the arbitrators uphold my strict adherence to the instructions, or bend the rules themselves and make changes – which has happened to me before.

52 Ancestors: #29, Mysterious Mary, Part 2: Mary (Campbell) Bowlen Green – Still Unrelated?

When we left Mary Bowlen and her children at the end of part 1, it was 1860. Mary's husband George, and their second son Albert, had both died from consumption the previous year, and Mary had appeared with her three remaining children in the 1860 census.

When they surface once again, in the 1865 Massachusetts state census, it's only the children who are still named Bowlen. They are now in the household of Daniel W. Green, who appears to have married their mother and given them a half-sister:¹

• Daniel W. Green, 28, b. Mass, laborer
• Mary A. Green, 32, b. Prince Edw Island
• Sarah W. Green, 4, b. Mass
• George W. Bowlen, 11, b. Mass
• Edward W. Bowlen, 10, b. Mass
• Annabel Bowlen, 6, b. Mass
• Caldwell Bowlen, 28, b. Nova Scotia (apparently another half-brother of the late George Bowlen)²

1865 Massachusetts state census, Newburyport, Daniel W. Green household

The presence of the Bowlens in the household clearly confirms that Mary A. Green must be Mary Bowlen, but I have searched in vain for a record of a marriage – between 1859 (George Bowlen's death) and 1861 (Sarah Green's birth) and beyond, in Newburyport and all of Massachusetts – of a Daniel Green with a Mary of any surname. Neither Mary Bowlen nor Daniel Green are in the 1864 Newburyport directory. Daniel W. Green, dresser (and once, a junk dealer), does appear in all of the available Newburyport city directories from 1866 through 1879; beginning in 1874, he lived at 41 Market Street.³ (You'll see this address again.)

Daniel and Mary had three daughters:

1. Sarah Worthen Green, b. 1861, parents D.W. & Mary Green (b. Clinton, Mass, and Prince Edward Island)⁴
2. Idela F. Green, b. 1866, parents Danl & Mary (Campbell) Green (b. Clinton, Mass, and Prince Edward Island); d. 1866, age 8 mo 17 da, of water on the brain, parents David [sic] W & Mary A Green (b. Clinton, Mass, and Nova Scotia)⁵
3. Mary F. Coffin Green, b. 1870, parents Daniel W. & Mary (Campbell) Green (b. Clinton, Mass, and Georgetown P[EI])⁶

In the 1870 census, the three Bowlen children are still in the Green household along with Sarah. Mary is 37 and once again claiming to be from Nova Scotia; Daniel and the children are all born in Massachusetts.⁷

1870 U.S. census, Newburyport, Mass., Danl W Green household

In 1879, Mary once again lost a husband to consumption, when Daniel died at the age of 43.⁸ In the 1880 Newburyport directory, Daniel W. Green is listed as having died November 27, 1879, followed by "Green Daniel W. Mrs. widow," still living at 41 Market Street.⁹

Death of Daniel W. Green, 1879, Newburyport, Mass.

1880 Newburyport, Mass., city directory, listings for Daniel W. Green (deceased) and his widow

And the 1880 census shows the household of Mary A. Green, 45, widow, with daughters Sadie W. Green (19) and Mary F.C. Green (9) and sons George W. Bowlen (26) and Edward W. (24). (Oddly, Mary's birthplace, and those of the boys' father and mother, are all given as England.)¹⁰

1880 U.S. census, Newburyport, Mass., Mary A. Green household

Mary continued to live at 41 Market Street throughout the next couple of decades, first as "Mrs. Daniel W Greene", then as "Mary A Greene, widow of Daniel W".¹¹ One by her children married and moved out: Annabell to Nicholas Varina in 1877; Edward to Rachel Berry in 1881; Sarah to Benjamin Rowand in 1882; George to Fannie Page in 1883;¹² and finally, Mary to William Decie in 1891.

Up to this point, we've seen no indication that Mary might be a Murphy. All the records so far appear to indicate that she was Mary A. Campbell (or possibly Mary M.?), born sometime between 1829 and 1836, either in Nova Scotia or on Prince Edward Island – with P.E.I. having a slight edge, both in number of references and the detail of Georgetown in two records.

So, why do I still think she might actually be a Murphy? Well, for starters, I can't find any George and Martha Campbell having kids in P.E.I. around the appropriate timeframe, nor is there any George Campbell in the 1841 or 1861 P.E.I. censuses. And then, there is the matter of her marriage to that third husband, some 18 years after Daniel's death, as well as Mary's death record. Stay tuned for "Mysterious Mary, Part 3: Mary (Murphy) Bowlen Green Bamber – GGG Aunt?".

(Note: This post is in response to Amy Johnson Crow's "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge at No Story Too Small.)

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SOURCES

1. 1865 Massachusetts State Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport Ward 5, unpaginated, dwelling 65, family 95, Daniel W. Green household; digital image, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 17 Feb 2014).
2. "Public Member Trees," database, Ancestry.com (http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/23464675/person/1662694820/ : accessed 16 Jul 2014), story "WC Bowlen Memories" attached to profile of William Caldwell Bowen, in "Huss - LeSage Family Tree," owner "LoriLesage167"; also public comments on the story, 16 July 2012, from Kenneth Bowlen.
3. The Newburyport Directory... [year] (Newburyport, Mass.: Hosea T. Crofoot, 1864-73, 1877-79; Steven H. Fowle, 1874), entries for Daniel W. Green, p. 57 (1866), p. 51 (1869), p. 49 (1871), p. 52 (1873), p. 54 (1874), p. 53 (1877), p. 57 (1879); database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Apr 2014). There are no entries 1n 1864 for Daniel Green (p. 63) or for Mary Bowlen (p. 31).
4. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," database and digital images, New England Historic Genealogical Society, American Ancestors (http://www.americanancestors.org : accessed 18 Feb 2014), Newburyport, Essex, Mass., vol. 141, p. 306, birth of Sarah Worthen Green, 1861; citing “original records held by the Massachusetts Archives”. 
5. Ibid. (accessed 26 Apr 2014), vol. 186, p. 248, birth of unnamed female Green, 1866, and vol. 192, p. 202, death of Idela F. Green, 1866.
6. Ibid. (accessed 18 Feb 2014), vol. 223, p. 277, birth of Mary Coffin Green, 1870.
7. 1870 U.S. Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport, p. 39 (penned), p. 183 (stamped), dwelling 297, family 311, Danl W Green household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 14 Feb 2014). 
8. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910" (accessed 18 Feb 2014), Newburyport, vol. 310, p. 256, death of Daniel W. Greene, 1879.
9. The Newburyport Directory, 1880-81 (Newburyport, Mass.: Hosea T. Crofoot, 1880), p. 57, entries for Daniel W. Green and Mrs. Daniel W. Green; database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 14 Feb 2014).
10. 1880 U.S. Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport, ED 226, p. 13 (penned), p. 476 (stamped), dwelling 138, family 153, Mary A. Green household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 14 Feb 2014). 
11. The Newburyport Directory, [year]... (Boston: Sampson, Davenport, & Co., 1882-1884) and The Newburyport and Amesbury Directory, [year]... (Boston: Sampson, Murdock, & Co. 1886-1896), entries for Mrs. Daniel W. Greene (1882, 84, 86, 89, 91, 92) and Mary A. Greene (1894, 96); database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Apr 2014). All entries are for 41 Market Street. Also, George W Bowlen is listed as "boarding" at 41 Market in 1879, 1880, and 1882, and Edward W. Bowlen likewise in 1880.
12. Sadly, George died at age 29 in 1884, like his father before him, of consumption. He and Fannie had no children, and she died only two years later, of septicemia.

52 Ancestors: #28, Mysterious Mary, Part 1: Mary (Campbell) Bowlen – Unrelated Stranger?

In my post on my great-great-great-grandfather, Michael Murphy (52 Ancestors #17), I mentioned that I had gotten wind of several possible additional children – three female and one male – of Michael and his wife Magdelen, through an online tree.¹

Of the four "possibles", the most mysterious is a thrice-wedded woman who may be my hitherto unsuspected great-great-grand aunt Mary A. Murphy²... or else an unrelated stranger named Mary A. (or Mary M.) Campbell. Or maybe, just maybe, there were two different Marys, one Campbell and one Murphy. But let me lay out the evidence and see what you think. To keep the length of my posts (somewhat) in check, I'm going to do this in three parts, one for each husband.

I have found no birth record on Prince Edward Island for either Mary Murphy or Mary Campbell, and this woman had left P.E.I. long before the Island's first fully nominal census in 1881. So my first glimpse of mysterious Mary is on 15 June 1853, when George Bowling and Mary Campbell married in Newburyport, Massachusetts. He was 23, a shoemaker, and born in Nova Scotia to William and Eliza Bowling; she was 24, born in Georgetown, P.E.I., to George and Martha Campbell. It was the first marriage for each and both were residents of Newburyport.³

Marriage of George Bowling and Mary Campbell, 15 Jun 1853, Newburyport, Mass.

Over the next six years, George Bowling, shoemaker, appeared in the Newburyport city directory living on Merrimack Street in 1855, 1856, and 1858 (but oddly, not in 1854).⁴ George and Mary had four children:

1. George William Bowling, b. 1854, parents George & Mary M. (both b. Nova Scotia)⁵
2. Edward Westley Bowling, b. ca 1856 (from census records, birth record not found)
3. Albert A. Bowling, b. 1857, parents George & Mary Bowling (b. Nova Scotia and Newburyport),⁶ d. 1859 of consumption⁷
4. Annabelle Bowling, b. ca 1859 (from census records, birth record not found)

The only census record is from the 1855 Massachusetts state census,⁸ listing:

• George Bowlen, 26, shoemaker, b. Nova Scotia
• Mary M Bowlen, 26, b. P.E. Island
• George Wm Bowlen, 1, b. Mass.
• William Bowlen, 17, shoemaker, b. Nova Scotia (apparently a half-brother of George's)⁹
• Mary Riley, 16, b. Ireland (unidentified; perhaps William's girlfriend?)

1855 Massachusetts state census, Newburyport, George Bowlen household

In February 1859, a George "Bolen", age not given, died of consumption in Newburyport. (His son Albert would follow him less than three months later.) While his occupation is given as "mechanic" (not shoemaker), his birthplace is Truro, Nova Scotia, and his father is given as William Bolen (no mother listed), which fits what we know about George Bowling/Bowlen.¹⁰

Death record of George Bolen, 18 Feb 1859, Newburyport, Mass.

Add in the 1860 city directory listing for "Bowlen Mary Maria widow of George" at 215 Merrimac (George was at 216 in 1858, and I think the 215 might be a typo, as a Caldwell Bowlen, apparently another of George's half-brothers, is boarding at 216), and it's pretty certain that George "Bolen" was Mary's husband.¹¹

1860 Newburyport, Mass., city directory, listing for "Bowlen Mary Maria widow of George"

The 1860 census shows the "Bolen" household consisting of Mary Bolen, 26, b. Nova Scotia, and Geo W (7), Edward W (4), and Annabell (1), all b. Mass (plus an unidentified 9-year-old Mary G. Austin).¹²

1860 U.S. census, Newburyport, Mass., Mary Bolen household

The Bowlens then drop out of sight until the 1865 Massachusetts state census, where we'll catch up with them in "Mysterious Mary, Part 2: Mary (Campbell) (Bowlen) Green – Still Unrelated?".

(Note: This post is in response to Amy Johnson Crow's "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge at No Story Too Small.)

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SOURCES

1. "Public Member Trees," database, Ancestry.com (http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/12995771 : accessed 22 Sep 2013), profiles of Michael Murphy, Margaret/Magdelen Morrison, and children, in "Dwyer Family Tree," owner "dgbishop189". This tree is partially sourced.
2. Ibid., profile of Mary A. Murphy in "Dwyer Family Tree."
3. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," database and digital images, New England Historic Genealogical Society, American Ancestors (http://www.americanancestors.org : accessed 14 Feb 2014), Newburyport, Essex, Mass., vol. 69, p. 259, marriage of George Bowling and Mary Campbell, 1853; citing “original records held by the Massachusetts Archives”. 
4. A Directory of the City of Newburyport... for [year] and The Newburyport Directory... for [year] (Newburyport, Mass.: various printers/publishers, 1854-1857), entries for George Bowling, p. 47 (1855), p. 24 (1856-57), p. illegible but determined to be 58 (1858); database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Apr 2014). There is no entry for Bowling or Bowlen in 1854, p. 46. 
5. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," (accessed 26 Apr 2014), Newburyport, vol. 81, p. 222, birth of George William "Stoonwood", 1854. This entry, originally dated April 29, 1854, clearly had no surname listed at the time, either for the child or for the parents, given only as "George & Mary M" (the other entries on the page give the father's surname). "Stoonwood" is entered as the child's surname in a different hand, and the date "29" is lined out and replaced with "30," both corrections underlined, and it is noted in the left margin, in the same hand, "(Date and name received Oct. 1, 1894)". Seven lines above (on line 55) is an original entry (with no apparent additions or corrections) dated Oct. 30, 1854, for George William Stanwood, parents William and Martha D. Stanwood. I believe that some information was received in 1894 for the already-complete George William Stanwood, and was mistakenly applied to the "George William" with no listed surname.
6. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," (accessed 14 Feb 2014), Newburyport, vol. 105, p. 307, birth of unnamed male Bowling, 1857.
7. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," (accessed 18 Feb 2014), Newburyport, vol. 129, p. 163, death of Albert A. Bowling, 1859.
8. 1855 Massachusetts State Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport Ward 6, unpaginated, dwelling 79, family 83, George Bowlen household; digital image, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 17 Feb 2014). From this point on, the surname appears in records as "Bowlen" or "Bolen."
9. "Public Member Trees," database, Ancestry.com (http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/23464675/person/1662694820/ : accessed 16 Jul 2014), story "WC Bowlen Memories" attached to profile of William Caldwell Bowen, in "Huss - LeSage Family Tree," owner "LoriLesage167"; also public comments on the story, 16 July 2012, from Kenneth Bowlen.
10. "Massachusetts Vital Records, 1841–1910," (accessed 25 Apr 2014), Newburyport, vol. 129, p. 162, death of George Bolen, 1859. 
11. The Newburyport Directory... for 1860 (Newburyport, Mass.: Hosea T. Crofoot, 1859), entry for "Bowlen Mary Maria widow of George", p. 51; database and digital images, "U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 Apr 2014). 
12. 1860 U.S. Census, Essex County, Massachusetts, Newburyport, p. 277, dwelling 1904, family 2080, Mary Bolen household; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 17 Feb 2014).

52 Ancestors: #27, Silas Marchant Hillman Hodsdon

My great-grandfather, Silas Marchant Hillman Hodsdon, was born 31 March 1847 in Byron, Maine, the sixth child of Isaac Hodsdon and Abigail Greene.¹

He holds the record for my longest-named ancestor (not counting those French-Canadians "dit" names). He was apparently named for his uncle, Silas M. H. Greene – who in turn was apparently named for his uncle by marriage: his aunt, Rebecca Greene, had married Silas Marchant Hillman.

Silas Marchant Hillman "March" Hodsdon, probably Andover, Maine, date unknown²

According to family tradition, my great-grandfather hated the name Silas, and dropped both Silas and Hillman from his name. It may well be true that he hated the name, but unless he was extremely precocious in his name preferences, it would appear that his parents were actually the ones who pruned his plethora of names right from the start; he was, after all, only three when he was listed in the 1850 census as just "Marchant".³ In any case, he did indeed go by Marchant or simply "March" all his life, using Silas as his middle name.

1850 U.S. census, Byron, Oxford, Maine, Isaac Hodsdon household

Death record of Marchant S. Hodsdon

March married Kate Maria Rand in Byron on the 25th or 29th of November 1876.⁴ They had six children:

1. Luther Marchant Hodsdon, b. 1877, married 1) Charlotte Barker, 2) Grace Parker, 3) Ruth Hall
2. Sadie Elizabeth Hodsdon, b. 1879, married Harrie P. Hall
3. Mary Milliken Hodsdon, b. 1882, married Chester F. Kirk
4. Essie Gertrude Hodsdon, b. 1884, married John J. Sennett
5. Grace Hodsdon, b. 1887, married Henry L. Thomas
6. Gardner P. Hodsdon, b. 1895, d. 1908

March Hodsdon was a farmer. He and Kate lived in Byron until sometime in late 1879 or early 1880, when they moved to a farm in Andover.

March died of an embolism on 4 October 1911⁵ and is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in Andover.⁶

Marchant Hodsdon family gravestone, Woodlawn Cemetery, Andover, Maine

My descent from March Hodsdon:

• Silas Marchant Hillman Hodsdon and Kate Maria Rand
• Mary Milliken Hodsdon and Chester Frank Kirk (my paternal grandparents)

(Note: This post is in response to Amy Johnson Crow's "52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks" challenge at No Story Too Small.)

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SOURCES

1. "Maine, Births and Christenings, 1739-1900," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 7 Jul 2014), Silas Merchant [sic] Hillman Hodsdon, 31 Mar 1847.
2. Photo of Silas Marchant Hillman "March" Hodsdon, probably Andover, Maine, date unknown; Kirk-Murphy Family Collection, privately held by the author, Virginia Beach, Virginia. This print appears to be made from a scan of the original (or perhaps of a photocopy), and was probably provided by Jean Constantine Noyes, great-grandaughter of March Hodsdon, to the author's brother Marshall Kenneth Kirk. Whereabouts of the original is unknown.
3. 1850 U.S. Census, Oxford County, Maine, Byron, p. 409 (penned) p. 205 (stamped), dwelling 42, family 45, Isaac Hodsdon household; digital images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 10 Mar 2012).
4. "Maine, Marriages, 1771-1907," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 17 Jan 2014), Marchant S. Hodsdon and Kate N. [sic] Rand, 25 Nov 1876, Byron, Maine. Jean Noyes, comp., "Silas Marchant Hillman Hodsdon", undated computer printout, Marshall K. Kirk Research Files, privately held by the author, Virginia Beach, Virginia; gives 29 Nov 1876 as the date of their marriage.
5. “Maine, Death Records, 1617-1922,” database and digital images, Ancestry.com (http://search.ancestry.com : accessed 27 Apr 2012), Marchant S. Hodsdon, 4 Oct 1911. 
6. Woodlawn Cemetery (Andover, Oxford County, Maine), Marchant Hodsdon family monument, read and photographed by the author, 15 Aug 2012.