Elias D. and Annis (Cole) Jones

My search for Ida Ellen Andrews' parents had led me to Elias D. and Annis Cole Jones. I first found Elias and Annis in census records a year and a half or so after beginning my search. They were living in Indiana, and census records indicated they had both been born in New York. They were married in St. Joseph County, Indiana 23 July 1840.

The Elias D. Jones household was enumerated in Liberty Township, St. Joseph County, Indiana in the 1850 U.S. census and looked like this:

• Elias D. Jones, farmer, age 31, born N. York, owned real estate valued at $200
• Annis Jones, age 29, born N. York
• Emma Jane Jones, age 6, born Ind.
• Frances M. Jones, age 3, born Ind.
• Caroline A. Jones, age 2 mos., born Ind.

In 1860 the family was still living in Liberty Township and had grown:

• Elias Jones, farmer, age 41, born NY, owned real estate valued at $500 and a personal estate of $150.
• Annis Jones, age 39, born NY
• Emma Jones, age 16, born Ind.
• Frances Jones, age 13, born Ind.
• Caroline Jones, age 10, born Ind.
• Rodger Jones, age 7, born Ind.
• Benjamine Jones, age 5, born Ind.

The image of this 1860 census page in Family Search is very hard to read. If you have an Ancestry subscription, the image there is much better. You can find it here. Both Family Search and Ancestry transcribed the last name as Janes, so initially it was not included in searches for Jones. That is still the case with Family Search. And Ancestry indexed Rodger as Kadgen. If only all census takers had perfect handwriting!

A History of St. Joseph County Indiana, by Timothy Edward Howard (1907) mentions Elias. "Except the cities of South Bend and Mishawaka, (Walkerton) is the largest and most important municipal corporation in St. Joseph County. The town, as it now stands, is a combination of different towns and additions, all united under the name and government of Walkerton. The first of these corporations was that of West Troy, laid out by Elias D. Jones in the southeast part of the northeast quarter of section twenty-three, township thirty-five north, range one west. This town was platted by Mr. Jones December 14, 1854." It seems Elias was a real estate developer.

An 1863 map of St. Joseph County, Indiana, at the Library of Congress shows landowners. The land described above is labeled E. D. Jones. West Troy and Walkerton are in the lower left corner of the map. A. H. Cole owns land adjacent to E. D. Jones. (Annis had a brother Alvah H. Cole.)

By 1870 Elias and his family were living in Lincoln Township (Walkerton Post Office). I don't see Lincoln Twp. on the 1863 map. It may have been formed after 1863. Maybe Elias didn't actually move at all. Maybe only the township boundaries changed. This is how his household appears in 1870:

• Elias D. Jones, farming, age 52, born New York, owned real estate valued at $5000, and a personal estate of $391.
• Anice Jones, keeping house, age 49, born New York
• Roger S. Jones, works on farm, age 18, born Indiana
• Benjamine Jones, age 15, born Indiana
• Amanda C. Jones, age 19, born Indiana

Hmmm. Where was Amanda in 1860? Could Amanda C. be the Caroline A. from 1850 and Caroline from 1860? Her age fits. Apparently Emma Jane and Frances M. have left home, perhaps married.

Annis' obituary states as early as  1873 the family settled on Pleasant Ridge, Merrick County (Nebraska). 

And in 1880 Elias and Annis are living in Midland Precinct, Merrick County, Nebraska with son, Roger, head of the household:

• Roger S. Jones, (single) farmer, age 27, born Indiana
• Elias D. Jones, "at home", age 61, father, born New York
• Annis Jones, keeping house, age 59, mother, born New York

 Roger Sherman Jones
Central City, Nebraska

Living nearby are Benjamin Jones and his family, also in Midland Precinct in 1880:

• Benjamin Jones, farmer, age 25, born Indiana
• Mary E. Jones, wife, age 20, keeping house, born Penn.
• Charles M. Jones, son, age 1, born Nebraska

And living not far from Benjamin and Mary are David J. and Elizabeth J. Lehr.

Benjamin Franklin Jones
Central City, Nebraska

Mary Jones

Charlie Jones
Central City, Nebraska

Mr. and Mrs. D. J. Lehr

In 1885 we get a "bonus" because in that year Nebraska, as well as a few other states, took an additional census. An interesting article by the National Archives regarding "The Forgotten Federal Census of 1885" can be viewed here. Thank you, Nebraska, for participating! Because in 1885 in Midland Township, Merrick County, Nebraska, we see this: 

• E. D. Jones, farmer, age 66, born New York
• Annis Jones, wife, age 64, keeps house, born New York
• Ida Andrews, niece, age 19, at school, born Indiana

At last, Ida with the Jones family! I could barely contain my excitement....but wait... niece? What?? I didn't know what to think. It was supposed to say granddaughter. Of course, it is often not that nice and neat. It had taken me years to get this far. It was going to take a few more.

Isaac Rickell (1859-1936)

On this day, 158 years ago, Isaac Rickell was born in Yarborough Parish (Louth Registration District) Lincolnshire, England, to John and Mary Ann (Sinyard) Rickell.

In the 1861 England census John, Mary and Isaac were enumerated in the Yarborough parish, which according to Ancestry.com is/was an ecclesiastical parish associated within the Louth registration district. The entry for their household shows John was born in Laceby Parish, Mary in Welton Le Wold Parish and Isaac in Yarborough Parish (which I understand today is Yarburgh).

When Isaac was eight years old he lost his father in a tragic accident.

Lincolnshire Chronicle pub. 12 July 1867, pg. 5, col. 5

John Rickel left a wife and three children, the youngest only two weeks old. This article found online (BritishNewspaperArchive.co.uk) just last year, confirms the story passed down through the generations. Google is a beautiful thing.

Mary Rickell Wilson recorded this record of her family. Brandon is not a surname, but rather the name of the town in Wisconsin where she lived at the time.

The entry of Mary's death appears to be in the handwriting of her son, Isaac. Isaac's death was recorded by his daughter, Bertha.

Photo of Mary Ann Sinyard Rickell and her children taken in England.
Original with the Rickell family papers

Mary immigrated to the U.S. in 1869 with relatives. They eventually settled in Wisconsin. John William died 8 Jun 1869, about two weeks shy of his second birthday. Daughter Mary Ann died 20 Mar 1870, age eight. Of Mary's six children, only Isaac lived to adulthood.

According to family tradition, Mary "brought her three (surviving) children to America where there were better advantages and a chance for a good education for her children. Two or three families of their relatives came over at the same time but we don't know where they settled. It took two weeks to make the trip in a "sailing vessel". She and her children settled in Brandon, Fon-du-Lac County, Wisconsin. (Isaac) was nine years old at the time. (Mary) kept a boarding house to make a living for her family and send her children to school." This information was written by Isaac's daughter.

I wonder if the above photo was taken shortly before Mary and her family left for America. The children would be about the right ages. Perhaps a farewell gift for the family she left behind?

Isaac Rickell

Mary Ann Sinyard Rickell

At the time these two photos of Isaac and Mary Ann were taken, they were likely the only family left. There are no other photos with the same framing. And, Isaac's last sibling died when he was ten.

Isaac Rickell

Back of Photo

Isaac Rickell - Probably taken in Nebraska

A quick Google search of Hutchings R.R. Photo Car indicates they operated in central Nebraska. This photo was likely taken after Isaac and his mother moved to central Nebraska.

Isaac's mother died 9 May 1883 and is buried in Evergreen Cemetery, St. Edward, Boone County, Nebraska. Isaac was now alone and in the words of his daughter "decided to cast his lot with the pioneers of western Nebraska". Free land was available to United States citizens, and at 23, Isaac (a subject of the Queen of Great Britain) filed a Declaration of Intention to become a U.S. citizen.

Isaac Rickell - 1883 Declaration of Intention

On Isaac's 30th birthday, 128 years ago today, he married Ida Ellen Andrews in Hemingford, Box Butte County, Nebraska. More about Isaac's life and family in Box Butte County in a future installment....

Ida Ellen Andrews Rickell - Part II: Ida's Death Certificate - Will it Reveal Her Parents?

A 1983 copy of Ida's death certificate gives more clues about her life. Her husband, Isaac provided her personal information.

Mrs. Ida E. Rickell, Certificate of Death

He reported that she was born in Indiana, the 20th of Sept., 1865, that her mother's maiden name was M. Jones and her father was J. Andrews. Interesting. Did Isaac not know their full given names? Could he have been guessing about the initials?

Isaac gave Ida this photo album for her birthday before they were married. The album contains several photographs of the Jones family which helped me begin to piece the family together.

"Uncle Frank Jones, My Mothers Uncle" and "Aunt Mary Jones, My Mothers Aunt"
The handwriting is that of Ida's daughter, Bertha

"These two are Brother and Sister"
"Uncle Sherman Jones" and "Grandma R's aunt"

"Charlie Jones, My Mother's Cousin"
and
"Edith Jones, My Mother's Cousin, was holding her Daddys watch."

 And loose in the back of the album I found this memorial card.

Hmmm. Who is D. J. Lehr? A name I hadn't heard before. Or had I? I kept looking. He must be an important person to Ida and Isaac. And, then I noticed this.

Witnesses to Isaac and Ida's Marriage

On 2 Aug 1884, B.F. Jones, a merchant in Central City, Nebr. signed a "Homestead Proof - Testimony of Witness"  for the homestead application of David J. Lehr. Lehr was applying for an additional homestead of 80 acres, adjacent to his original 80 acre homestead where he had lived for 11 years. The digitized document can be viewed here at Ancestry.com with a paid subscription.

And, among the treasure trove of items Ida and Bertha left behind is this 1903 letter Isaac wrote to his "wife and daughter" in care of R. S. Jones, Central City, Nebraska.

Apparently Ida and Bertha were visiting in Central City and would "start" for home in a few days. Isaac mentions "Grandma" and "Sherm".

In 1900, Sherman Jones, a single man born in Aug 1852, was working as a carpenter and living in Central City, Merrick Co., Nebraska. His widowed mother, Annis Jones, born in New York in Feb. 1821, was living with him. Annis was the mother of six children and only two were still living. You can view this census record at Family Search here. It seems the R.S. Jones on the above letter must have been R. Sherman Jones and the Grandma in the letter was likely Annis Jones, Ida's grandmother!

It took me another three years, but in 2015, I found an index of early Merrick County obituaries on a genealogy website. It included a 1906 obituary for an Annis Jones. I was hopeful the obituary would list Ida as Annis' granddaughter. A library assistant at the Central City Public Library was able to locate the obituary.

No mention of Ida. As often is the case with a new discovery, it answers a few questions and raises a few others. It clears up the names of her sons, Benjamin Franklin Jones and Roger Sherman Jones. It seems they commonly used their initials or middle names rather than their first names. Their father was Elias D. Jones. The obituary states Annis had seven children. (The 1900 census showed six.) Elias had died about eighteen years earlier. Annis other children were not named. If Annis was Ida's grandmother, one of the unnamed daughters was Ida's mother.

What next?

Ida Ellen Andrews Rickell (1865-1926)

So I enter the world of blogging where I began my family history journey eight years ago. With my great grandmother, Ida Ellen Andrews. Her early life has been largely a mystery.

The only known photograph of Ida Ellen Andrews

Ida's daughter, Bertha, wrote the following undated biography of her mother, probably about the same time she wrote a biography of her father, Isaac Rickell. Isaac's biography was finished in 1948, twenty-two years after Ida's death. In the beginning, I took every detail as the gospel truth. In time I realized after many years, memories fade and details blur.

Bertha referred to her maternal grandparents as Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, apparently not knowing their given names. And, Isaac did not know their names when he applied for a marriage license in 1889. The clerk who recorded the information, listed Ida's surname as Anderson, but it is Andrews on their marriage certificate.

Application for Marriage License, 11 Nov 1889

Marriage Certificate, 14 Nov 1889

Obituary, Ida E. Andrews Rickell

Ida's obituary gives her year of birth as 1865 which supports her age of 24 at her marriage in 1889. The 1860 birth year in her biography is likely an error.

So who were Ida's parents? The search continues with my next post.