It's always fun to be given a new family name to investigate. Today, let's look at the Cadwallader family of Indiana. Cadwallader is an uncommon name, which can be beneficial, but often those benefits are diminished by the multitude of spelling variations. I have a name and a state. Ezra Lewis Cadwallader is the great-grandfather of a friend in his twenties (that can give me a general age idea, if he falls within the norms) and he lived in Indiana. My first search indicates that perhaps Ezra is a family name. I come up with two Ezra's in Indiana, one of which is almost certainly the Ezra of interest, born about 1907 and living in Randolph County, Indiana. The other Ezra was born about 1842 in Indiana, lived in Clinton County, Ohio in 1870, but was married to a Rebecca Hill in Randolph County, Indiana. We will perhaps find that he is related to our Ezra later, but back to our Ezra Lewis.
In 1920 we find Ezra L. Cadwallader in Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana, with Thomas B. and Gladys Cadwallader, as well as a brother Melvin H. and sister, Dorothy C., and Robert and Walter M. Derrickson, that are reported as uncles of the head of household Thomas B.
1920 Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana
Thomas B. Cadwallader, age 35, born Indiana about 1885, both parents born Indiana, renting, able to read and write
Gladys Cadwallader, age 31, born Indiana about 1889, both parents born Indiana, able to read and write
Ezra L. Cadwallader, age 13, born Indiana about 1907, son, both parents born Indiana, able to read and write
Melvin H. Cadwallader, age 10, born Indiana about 1910, son, both parents born Indiana, able to read and write
Dorothy C. Cadwallader, age 5, born Indiana about 1915, daughter, both parents born Indiana
Robert Derrickson, age 65, born Indiana about 1855, uncle, both parents born Delaware, single, able to read and write
Walter M. Derrickson, age 56, born Indiana about 1864, both parents born Indiana, single, able to read and write
One of the first things I notice is that we're lucky to have some related men in the household that can help us construct the maiden names of women in the family, and also I note that it looks like they are not brothers, since their parents were born in different places.
As a starting point, I feel pretty confident that this is our Ezra. The middle initial is right on, the location in Indiana is good, he is the only Ezra or Lewis that is of the right age and place. I will continue on this path and determine if this is indeed our Ezra. A quick 1930s search isn't finding him, but I do find the Thomas and Gladys household on Potts Road, still in Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana.
1930 Federal Census, District 4, Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana, household 182
Thomas Cadwallader, head, age 45, born Indiana about 1885, parents both born Indiana, farmer, general farm, first marriage at age 22
Gladys Cadwallader, age 41, born Indiana, parents both born Indiana, wife, first marriage at age 18
Robert Cadwallader, age 5, son, born Indiana, parents both born Indiana
[At the same address, but household 183 we find Thomas' son]
Melvin Cadwallader, head, age 20, all born Indiana, married at age 20, laborer on a farm
Pauline Cadwallader, wife, age 21, married at age 21, all born Indiana,
[I'm not sure where Ezra is in 1930, have found a few possibilities, but still investigating]
They were also in Randolph County, Indiana in 1910 on South Harrison in Washington Twp.
1910 US Federal Census p. 8A, District 141, Washington, Randolph, Indiana
Thomas Cudarallaer, head, age 25, born Indiana, parents born Indiana
Gladys, wife, age 21, born Indiana, parents born Indiana
Ezra, son, age 3
Malvin, son, age 11/12
At the family search.org site, I am able to find a marriage record for Thomas B. and Gladys in Randolph County, Indiana.
Thomas Martin Cadwallader married Gladia Derickson [sic] 27 Feb. 1906.
Father: H.C. Cadwallader
Mother : Jennie Brown
Batch No. MO11574
This is the record for an actual extracted marriage record and if you go to any Family History Library, you can order the microfilm and make a copy of the certificate.
Gladia is found with her father, John Derrickson, in 1900 in Greensfork, but he has only been married to his wife for ten years, so Gladia's mother may well have died at her birth or shortly thereafter. Or the ten years could be a mistake because Marry does say that she has one child, still living...although he/she could be out of the house since she is 36. I have not found a marriage record or maiden name for her yet. A quick glance at other census information indicates that John may have been married multiple times, and with extended members of the family living in the same households, the Derrickson family will need more extensive research time to deconstruct. This is another family genealogy that could really use that 1890 census!!
1900 US Federal Census Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana
John Derickson, head, age 53, born Jun 1846 in Indiana, both parents born Delaware, married ten years
Marry Derickson, age 36, born May 1864 in Indiana, both parents born in Indiana
Gladia Derickson, age 11, born Oct 1888 in Indiana, daughter, both parents born in Indiana
Robert Derickson, age 45, born Jun 1854 in Indiana, boarder, both parents born in Indiana
With the marriage certificate information, I will look for Jennie Cadwallader and see if I can find out what H.C.'s entire name is.
We also now know that the Derrickson's listed in the census in 1920 are uncles of Gladys, not Thomas. This is a very common occurrence in census records. If the wife gave the information, relationships are often listed in relation to her and not the head of household as they were supposed to be.
At first search, I don't find the family, but when I look for Thomas, born in Indiana in 1885, I find the family in Greensfork in 1900.
1900 Federal Census, Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana
Henry Cadwalader, age 47, born Dec 1852, Indiana, both parents born Indiana, married 18 years
Nancy J Cadwalader, age 36, born Mar 1864 in Indiana, father born Ohio, mother born Indiana, gave birth to eleven children, nine alive, married 1882
Ina Cadwalader, age 16, born Jul 1883 in Indiana, daughter, both parents born Indiana
Thomas M. Cadwalader, age 15, born Jul 1884 in Indiana, son, both parents born Indiana
Mary A. Cadwalader, age 11, born Jan 1889 in Indiana,daughter, both parents born Indiana
Henry Cadwalader, age 10, born Mar 1890 in Indiana, son, parents born Indiana
James E. Cadwalader, age 8, born Sep 1891 in Indiana, son, both parents born Indiana
George W. Cadwalader, age 7, born Apr 1893 in Indiana, son, both parents born Indiana
Juley C. Cadwalader, age 5, born Jan 1895 in Indiana, daughter, both parents born Indiana
Harvey G. Cadwalader, age 3, born Oct 1896 in Indiana, son, both parents born Indiana
Miram C. Cadwalader, age 1, born Sep 1898 in Indiana, daughter, both parents born Indiana
1920 US Federal Census Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana ED 151, sheet 4B
Henry Cadwallader, head, age 68, born about 1852 in Indiana, both parents born Indiana, can read and write
Nancy J. Cadwallader, age 55, born about 1865 in Indiana, wife, father born Kentucky, mother born Indiana, mother's name Ellartina
George W. Cadwallader, age 26, son, born about 1894 in Indiana, both parents born Indiana, able to read and write
Harvey Cadwallader, age 23, son, born in Indiana about 1897, both parents born Indiana, able to read and write
Miriam Cadwallader, age 21, daughter, born about 1899 in Indiana, both parents born in Indiana, able to read and write
Ellartina Brown, age 78, mother-in-law, born in Ohio about 1842, both parents born in Ohio, widow, able to read and write [ancestry submitted name listed as should be read "Celestina Brown"]
1930 US Federal Census Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana, ED 68-4, sheets 6A-B
Harvey Cadwallader, head, age 33, born about 1897 in Indiana, farmer
May Cadwallader, wife, age 29, born about 1901 in Indiana, age 19 at first marriage
Evelyne Cadwallader, age 2, born about 1927 in Indiana
Clark Cadwallader, father, age 79, born about 1851 in Indiana, age 30 at first marriage
Nancy E. Cadwallader, mother, age 66, born about 1864 in Indiana, age 15 at first marriage
So now we have Thomas' parents' names as Henry C. Cadwalader and Nancy Jennie Brown married in 1882 and living in Randolph County, Indiana. Consulting the Indiana Marriage Collection, we find that Henry Clarkson Cadwallader married Nancy Jane Brown 15 Jun 1882 in Randolph, Indiana by Min. J. B. Barnes. Of course, the 1890 census was lost, so we are unable to see the family in their early years, but maybe we can find Henry and Nancy with their birth families.
Henry C. is easy to find in 1870 in Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana, and we find that indeed, Ezra the younger is the namesake of his grandfather Ezra.
1870 US Federal Census, Greens Fork, Randolph, Indiana, page 28
Ezra Cadwallader, age 51, born about 1819 in Ohio, farmer, worth $2200 real, $400 personal
Rebecca Cadwallader, age 48, born about 1822 in Indiana, keeps house
Thomas H. Cadwallader, age 25, born about 1845 in Indiana
Henry C. Cadwallader, age 19, born about 1851 in Indiana
Martha C. Cadwallader, age 12, born about 1858 in Indiana
Mariam E.M. Cadwallader age 7, born about 1863 in Indiana [mistranscribed at ancestry as age 19]
Vashi Semantha age 2, born about 1868 in Indiana
The family was a little harder to find in 1880, Ezra is gone, Henry is listed by a diminutive of his middle name, Clarkson, and Mariam is listed as Ella, also probably her middle name which began with an E. in the earlier census.
Photo by Sabrina and Tim Benner
Ezra Cadwallader
Died
Oct 20, 1877
Aged 58Y.7M.16D
1880 US Federal Census, page 16, Greens fork, Randolph, Indiana
Rebecca Cadwallader, age 57, keeping house, born in Indiana, both parents born South Carolina
Clark Cadwallader, age 27, son, farmer, born Indiana as are both parents [why doesn't this say father, Ohio? recheck]
Ella Cadwallader, age 16, daughter, at home, born Indiana, father born Ohio, mother born Indiana
Cemantha, age 12 grand-daughter, at school, born in Indiana, as are both parents
I wasn't sure if this was the correct family at first, but they are at the same location with the same neighbors and the middle names are matching the initials previously used. And it surely is not hard to find Henry Clarkson's future wife...she lived only households away.
Marcelus Brown, age 42, born about 1838 in Ohio, parents born unknown, farmer
Clestina, age 40, wife, born in Indiana, father born Kentucky, mother born PA, keeps house
Samuel, age 19, son, born abut 1861 in Indiana, father born Ohio, mother in Indiana, works on farm
Nancy J., age 16, daughter, born about 1864 in Indiana, father born in Ohio, mother born in Indiana, at school
Willie, age 12, son, born about 1868 in Indiana, father born in Ohio, mother born in Indiana, at school
The family was in Greensfork in 1870 as well.
1870 US Federal Census, Greensfork, Randolph, Indiana, page no. 31(stamp print 332)
N M Brown, age 29, born about 1841 in Ohio, farmer
Celestine Brown, age 27, born about 1843 in Ohio, keeps house
Samuel R. Brown, age 6, born about 1864 in Indiana
Nancy Brown, age 6, born about 1864 in Indiana [marked to the side with a ? and the word twins]
Willie Brown, age 1, born about 1869 in Indiana
In the 1880s, many county biographical histories were published throughout the country, and they are full of clues but they are also replete with a multitude of errors and omissions. The History of Randolph County, Indiana's biography for Marcellus N. Brown follows.
MARCELLUS N. BROWN, farmer P.O. Lynn: born in Preble County, Ohio, February 28, 1838; he is the son of Thomas M. and Nancy J. (Brandon) Brown, the former born in Pennsylvania, and the latter in Darke County, Ohio, March 12, 1820. Mr. Brown was educated at Spartansburg; he was married August 1860 to Celestina Ruby, who was born in Darke County, Ohio, November 1, 1840. She is the daughter of Samuel F. and Jane (Mculty) Ruby, the former born April 27, 1812, and the latter February 17, 1818. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have been blessed with three children viz, Samuel R., born October 14, 1861; Nancy J., March 6, 1864, and Willie S., October, 1869. Mr. Brown became a resident of this county in 1849; he owns a farm of 100 acres in Section 25, on which he has bee residing since 1875. He is a thorough gentleman, and he and his worthy lady are respected by all who know them. (p. 370)
The marriage record index for Ezra and Rebecca Hill indicates that they were married 16 Aug 1843 in Randolph County. This marriage should be found on FHL US/CAN Film 1654838 and can be ordered through any Family History Center in your area.
The Randolph history indicates that William Hill and Mary Hockett are Rebecca Hill's parents.
William Hill was born in North Carolina in 1785; married Mary Hockett in 1807. (She was born in 1784, and came to Ohio in 1807.) They came to Wayne County, Ind., (near Richmond), in 1810; moved to Highland County, Ohio in 1811 ( probably on account of the Indians); returned to Wayne County, Ind., in 1816; came to Randolph County in 1823; bought sixty acres of land at second hand; had nine children, all living to become grown and to be married, and five still survive.
The children were Ruth, Aaron, Hiram, Martha, Sarah, Rebecca, Miriam, and Henry W., all born between 1808 and 1828.
William Hill died in 1840, aged fifty-five years; his wife died in 1865, aged eighty-one years.
W. H. was a sterling pioneer, active, discreet, zealous for the right, and he trained up his large family in the way in which they ought to go, and his descendants are to-day an active, estimable, worthy group of men and women. Many odd and quaint things are told of William Hill and of his boys, most of which are probably not true, and which, were they even true, will hardly pay to write down.
He was a farmer, a blacksmith, a plasterer, a brick-mason and what else we do not know. In religion, he was a Friend, in politics a Whig; and altogether an intelligent, reliable, citizen and worthy.
Since we have a nice, long, stable history of the family residing in Greensfork, Randolph County, Indiana, I think it is time to consult some of the local genealogical resources for mentions of the family names and some history about the area in which they lived,and look for more birth, death, and marriage records, as well as wills that will serve to substantiate the proposed family relationships.
In summary, the family, so far, looks to be thus:
Ezra Lewis Cadwallader, b. 1907 in Indiana
son of Thomas Martin Cadwallader, b.1885 in Indiana and Gladia Derrickson, b.1889 in Indiana
Gladia was the daughter of John Derrickson and unknown
Thomas Martin Cadwallader (1885) was the son of Henry Clarkson Cadwallader ,b.1852 in Indiana and Nancy Jane aka Jennie Brown, b.1864 in Indiana
Nancy Jennie Brown (1864) was the daughter of N. Marcelus Brown b.1841 in Ohio and Celestia b.1843 in Ohio
Henry Clarkson Cadwallader (1852) was the son of Ezra Cadwallader (1819-Ohio) and Rebecca Hill (1822-Ohio).
Rebecca Hill (1822) was the daughter of William Hill b. 1785 in North Carolina and Mary Hockett b. 1784.
Ezra Cadwallader (1819) was the son of Thomas Cadwallader b. 1795 in Virginia and Vashti b. 1797 in South Carolina.
The History of Randolph County indicates that Thomas Sr. Cadwallader (given as the father of Ezra, and buried at Arba Cemetery), husband of Vashti, was a Quaker, but that his son Ezra and his wife, Rebecca Hill, were early members of the United Brethren Bethel Church, as were other members of the Hill family. They are all buried at Arba Cemetery (I haven't found Rebecca, Ezra's widow, and do not know if she remarried or moved away), a cemetery began by the Quaker congregation. The history also indicates that the Cadwallader family of Greensfork arrived there in 1830 or1833. There is one mention of an Ira Cadwallader arriving to Greensfork in the same year as Abner and Thomas and in the listing of the oldest living settlers in 1882, there is mention of Amos Cadwallader. There are some indications that the family hails from Warren County, Ohio and before that, Virginia. Also note that Randolph County borders Darke County, Ohio.
From the Randolph County History:
Thomas Cadwallader was born in 1795, and came to Greensfork Township, Randolph Co., Ind., about 1830, in company with his brother Abner, settling in the woods. Abner died many years ago, but Thomas lived on, a steady, quiet, humble, thankful life, for fifty-two years, upon his little farm where first he pitched his tent under the "shadow of the beeches." He was all his life a member of the Society of Friends belonging at Arba. He departed this life at his residence, near Arba, Sunday, April 23, 1882, in his eighty-seventh year. The funeral services were held at the Arba Friends' Meeting-House on Tuesday following his death, being attended by a large concourse of neighbors, relatives, and friends. They were in the simple and impressive style common among the Quakers. His aged companion still survives him, being herself eighty-five years old. They had been married nearly or quite sixty-five years. He was born during the second term of Washington's administration, and was old enough to vote for James Monroe at his first election. His birth occurred the same year with Wayne's treaty with the Indians at Fort Greenville, Ohio, 1795, so that his life measures the whole interval since the power of the savage tribes over the great Western valley was broken by the master hand of Gen. Anthony Wayne. The change that has come over the world since Friend Thomas lay a babe in his cradle--how wondrous great!
Mr. Cadwallader lived all that long earthly life in the fear and love of God, and his happy spirit rests, doubtless, in the heavenly mansions.
His brother Abner, father of Hon. Nathan Cadwallader, came as stated above, with his brother Thomas, but did not very long survive, dying in middle life. Some account of his family may be found along with the biography of Hon. N. Cadwallader already mentioned.
From the biography of Nathan Cadwallader we get some additional family information:
Nathan Cadwallader, banker, was born in Warren County, Ohio, in 1826. His father moved to Greensfork, Randolph Co., Ind., in 1833. He was an active, thriving man, but he died in 1840. Nathan was the only boy, and but fourteen years old. By the "turn of times" and the worthlessness of "sale notes" the family became somewhat poor. Nathan's boyish management was none of the best. They had one old bay mare, and no way to get any more or to get much else. He "gouged along" after a "fashion," borrowed a horse sometimes, etc. He did most of the work that was done, though his sisters helped what they could in loading, cleaning grain, etc. They cleaned grain by "flapping" it on a sheet, and had to haul everything on a sled. A wagon was a luxury not to be thought of. Two brothers, Thomas and Abner (his father) came together, and settled west of Arba. Uncle Thomas is living yet, eighty-five years old, and his wife is over eighty. (He died a few months ago.)
A. C. married Mary Thomas in about the year 1825. She died in 1868. They had five children-Nathan, Vashti (Williams), Janet Gray Heitzman (widow), Sarepta (Chenoweth), Rachel (Bowen)-all living.
On the 1840 Greenfork, Randolph, Indiana census we find:
Thomas Cadwalader
one male age 10 to under 15
one male age 20 to under 30
one male 40 to under 50
Abner Cadwalader [three households away from Thomas]
one male age 10 to under 15
one male 30 to under 40
one male 70 to under 80
two females under 5
one female 5 to under 10
one female 10 to under 15
one female 30 to under 40
1850 US Federal Census Greensfork Randolph Indiana
Thomas Cadwalader age 55 farmer born in Virginia
Vashti Cadwalader age 53 born in South Carolina unable to read and write
Rachel Flora?? age 14 born in Indiana attending school
Sarah A. age 6 born in Indiana attending school
Links of interest:
Cadwallader burials at Arba Cemetery, Randolph, Indiana:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gsr&GSiman=1&GScid=691794&GSfn=&GSln=cadwallader
Arba Cemetery Info:
http://www.randolphcountyindianahistoricalsociety.org/
http://www.randolphcountyindianahistoricaabra_cemetery_grnfrk.htm
1882 History of Randolph County, Indiana online digitization with search capability"
http://www.archive.org/details/historyofrandolp00tuck
BYU Family History Collection online-surname search available in all digitized family histories:
http://www.lib.byu.edu/fhc/index.php
Family Search through LDS, many items are only good for leads or ideas, unless they are indexes of actual records and not just member contributions:
http://www.familysearch.org/ENG/search/frameset_search.asp
