Ancestry Family Trees

I read a lot of chatter on the various forums about family trees on Ancestry. Some folks love 'em, others hate 'em. 

I like having my tree available for a bunch of reasons, although I've noticed lots of folks using my photos and material without asking. 

On one hand, I don't really mind as I made my tree public so it - and my wealth of information - could be shared. I want to share. But on the other hand, I must say I hesitate when I see where someone has clearly cut and paste something I wrote without any acknowledgment. I even recently saw a family photo I own attached to someone not even in the family line. Sigh. 

We can't help what people do with our information. We can only hope they'll use it responsibly, do their own verification of the accuracy, and maybe somewhere down the road they will delight or inform a family member even if they don't correctly acknowledge how they obtained the information.

I love it when people email comments on my tree. Generally, it's to tell me I'm wrong about something, but even that has great value to me and I'm grateful for the time they took to make me rethink my facts. 

So...check out my tree and let me know what you think!  I sync it daily with Family Tree Maker so it's always up to date!

Joseph Stancil, 1840 - 1889, Johnston County, NC

Joseph STANCIL, my illustrious 3rd great uncle, was born in 1840 in Johnston County, NC as the fourth child of William Young STANCIL and Elizabeth Sallie MORGAN. 

He had eight siblings: Young Allen, Elizabeth, Seviah, Prudia, Moses, Edney, Aaron, and William. 

When he was 27, he married Sarah E GODWIN,daughter of Stevenson GODWIN and Elizabeth FLOWERS, on 15 Mar 1867 in Johnston County, NC.

Joseph STANCIL was counted in the census in...

• 1850 in District 15, Johnston, North Carolina. 
• 1860 in Neuse River, Johnston, North Carolina
• 1870 in Elevation, Johnston, North Carolina
• 1880 in Johnston County, North Carolina

Joseph served in the US Civil War in the NC 24th, Co. I. 

Once the war was over, Joseph and Sarah started a family:

• L. Florence STANCIL, born on 12 Feb 1866 in Johnston County, NC (Elevation Township). She died on 22 Oct 1917 in Harnett County, NC.
• Mary C. STANCIL, born in 1870 in Johnston County, NC (Elevation Township).
• Orther M STANCIL, born in 1871 in Johnston County, NC (Elevation Township).
• Arthur M. STANCIL, born about 1871. He married Lalan JOHNSON on 03 Feb 1892 in Johnston County, NC

Joseph died about Jul 1889 in Johnston County, NC. 

Alfred Turner Dent, 1828 - 1891

Alfred Turner Dent

Alfred Turner DENT, my 1st cousin 6 times removed, was born 10 May 1828 in Franklin County, North Carolina, as the first child of parents James Hutchison DENT and Lucy HORNSBY.  

Alfred first married Susan COOK. They moved to Tennessee about 1850 with his mother Lucy and various other family members. 

Alfred and Susan had no children. She apparently died as a young woman, possibly in Tennessee.

Alfred was back in Franklin County NC by 1862 when he enlisted in Co. I, 55th NC Reg, CSA. He was wounded July 1, 1863 at Gettsyburg, PA. He was a POW at David's Island NY.  Both his arm and leg were amputated. He was a farmer prior to the war, but became a teacher after the war.

When he was 40, Alfred married Ann Rebecca DUKE, daughter of Richard DUKE and Parthena DICKERSON, on 13 Jan 1869 in Granville County, North Carolina.

Alfred Turner DENT and Ann Rebecca DUKE had the following children:

• Issac DENT was born in 1870.
• James Rufus DENT was born 15 May 1873 and 19 Sep 1954 in Franklin County, NC.
• Eugene W. DENT was born in 1876.
• Charles T. DENT was born in 1881.

He died on 06 Jul 1891 and was buried in Vance County, North Carolina, in the Liles-Edward Cemetery, Henderson, NC.

Lois Jean Allen, 1911 - 1918

Lois Jean Allen Gravestone

Lois Jean ALLEN, my great aunt, was born on 27 Jan 1911 in the Brassfield area of Granville County, North Carolina. She was the third child of Eugene Narron ALLEN and Elizabeth RAY. 

Lois had seven siblings: Vada Atlas (my maternal grandmother), Mamie, Henrietta, Lacie, Elsie, John Benjamin, and Marvin Eugene. 

Lois was only 6 years old when she died of "exhaustion" brought on by Typhoid Fever on 05 Jan 1918 in Brassville Township.  She is buried at New Light Baptist Church the New Light area of extreme northern Wake County, NC. 

Lois Jean Allen Death Certificate

Tracking documentation

Eugene Narron Allen Death Certificate

Sometimes I get off on tangents and "special projects" that, while they have significant impact on my research, also feed my OCD. For example, I recently started filling in my collection of death certificates. I've said before that I love, love, love death certificates. They provide such rich information and insight. 

I especially like looking at cause of death and the informant to consider the circumstances that may have led up to the death. It's a huge part of the story.

The NC Archives has death certificates from about 1913 to 1979. I ran a FTM report and compiled a list of all family members with deaths in NC in that time frame. 

I had long ago scanned all of them, but they were scattered around my computer files, so I organized them into the proper folder and made sure they were attached as appropriate in Family Tree Maker.

For those that were missing, I first checked Ancestry.com to see if I could snag them online. If that failed, I ordered it from the NC Archives via their online portal.

I tracked cause of death and place of burial. Also the funeral home who handled the deceased, although I've not had any luck getting funeral home records.

Added bonus, of sorts:  Many many of my folks died of heart disease. Guess I need to hit the gym more often so that doesn't happen to me!

Next up:  Marriage records.

Wake County Genealogical Society's January Meeting

Please join the Wake County Genealogical Society for our first presentation of the new year with Dr. David Kendall, author of “When Descendants Become Ancestors: The Flip Side of Genealogy.”  This highly thought-provoking book challenges us to write our life stories and perhaps will even change the way we view history. 

Dr. Kendall’s goal is to encourage people of all ages to examine their lives, write and preserve short stories about their own life experiences and to use their wisdom to enhance the lives of future generations. His web site can be found at www.stories4descendants.com and includes a weekly blog. Dr. Kendall will also have copies of his book available for purchase.

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 at the Olivia Raney Local History Library, 4016 Carya Drive, Raleigh, NC  27610.  

  

Meetings are free and open to the public, and are for all levels of family historians and genealogists, whether or not you are researching in Wake County. Come share your stories and learn more about writing about your very own life experiences!

Emily Massengill Stancil, Johnston Co, NC, 1848-1884

Emily MASSENGILL, my 3rd great aunt, was born July 1848 in North Carolina as the second child of my 3rd great grandparents, Aaron MASSENGILL and Wilsie HARPER. She had two siblings, Mary Ann Rebecca and Bethena Hawkins.  

When she was 18, Emily married Moses STANCIL, my 3rd great uncle and also son of my 3rd great grandparents, William Young STANCIL and Elizabeth Sallie MORGAN, on 11 Dec 1866 in Johnston County, NC.

I descend from her sister, Mary Ann Rebecca, who married William Stancil, a brother of Moses. Two sisters married two brothers! AND...each of them are children of my 3rd great grandparents. How weird is THAT?

Moses served in the Confederate Army along with his two brothers Young Allen and Joseph Stancil. He helped build the Ironclad Abemarle and then fought on it in the battle at Plymouth, NC and until it was torpedoed. He served with Company B, 8th BN of NC. 

Emily was counted in the 1860 census in the Neuse River area of Johnston County, NC. She was also counted in 1880 the census in Smithfield, Johnston County, NC.

Moses and Emily had the following children prior to her death at age 36:

1. F. L. Stancel was born about 1869 in NC.
2. Bettie STANCIL was born about 1870 and died in 1891 in NC. 
3. David H. STANCIL was born about 1871 in NC.
4. William Aaron STANCIL was born about 1875 in NC.
5. S. H. Stancel was born about 1878 in NC.
6. Moses Luther STANCIL was born on 28 Dec 1879 in NC.
7. Junius J. STANCIL was born in 1882.

Emily died of July 1884 in Johnston County, NC. 

Family Tree Stats

Here's the statistics from my current Family Tree Maker database. 

Over 4000 people, 16 generations and 580 surnames. Over 15,000 facts and nearly 2000 pictures.

I'm impressed. With me. 

Fresh Starts in 2015

A new year is all about new opportunities, right? Fresh starts. 

I always do the resolutions thing. I'll exercise more, lose 20 pounds, keep a cleaner house, organize my research. Yeah. Right. A girl can dream.

Speaking of fresh starts, I've often toyed with the idea of starting my genealogy research all over again. After all these years and after all the MOUNTAINS of research and facts I've accumulated. 

I've done a terrible job over the years of documenting and properly citing my sources plus I've learned so very much along the way. This would be a great (but oh so daunting) chance to start at the beginning - with myself - and document things the right way. To reexamine my sources, rethink my research strategies. Seems a good way to jump-start my research, which really needs a shot in the arm.

Even one of my genealogical idols, Myrtle, has considered starting over. One of my favorite blogs suggests not really starting over, but instead doing a "reappraisal". 

Cool idea.