I have been an avid family history researcher for nearly nine years now.In 1995 I printed the results of my research on my father's family in THE DESCENDANTS OF CARSTEN EHRENBERG.Of course the research never entirely ends with the publication of the results.However, I have been concentrating on several men who seem to have left no trail of their lives behind.
One of the men is my father's great-great grandfather, WILLIAM SAUNDERS, who lived in the Westerly, Rhode Island area.He was married to LYDIA SISSON, daughter of SANFORD and ELIZABETH CHAPMAN SISSON.He apparently died circa 1846 either shortly before or soon after the birth of the 5th child.I have not been able to find record of his birth, marriage, death, burial, other than the 1840 census record of Washington County, Rhode Island.
Another "stone wall" is my mother's great-great grandfather, SHERMAN CLARK, who arrived in the Portage County/Trumbull County, Ohio area prior to 1833.One census gives his birthplace as Vermont.A family tradition is that he came from Connecticut to the Western Reserve.I suspect that he may have come with his father to Ohio by way of Vermont.He married JULIA ANN HOBART who is a descendant of EDMUND HOBART, an early settler in Massachusetts, through his son, PETER HOBART.Her father was BENJAMIN HOBART who married MARY WHEELER.
The other ancestor is ELI WILLIAMS who married SUSANNAH BRETZ, daughter of PHILLIP BRETZ, in Seneca County, Ohio.The BRETZ family came to Fairfield, Ohio, circa 1812 and then moved north to Seneca County.SUSANNAH BRETZ was married twice prior to her marriage to ELI WILLIAMS.She was widowed both times.She had 4 children with her first husband, 2 with her second and 4 more girls with ELI WILLIAMS.She divorced ELI WILLIAMS circa 1855 and he apparently died in the Ohio State Penitentiary.I have tried unsuccessfully to obtain records of his incarceration.
Other family names that I am researching include CAVE, HAMILTON, MONTGOMERY, COMPTON, BROOKS, MISEK, DOLEZAL, KMENT, AYRES, PRESCOTT, SASS, and WITT.
I am in the process of constructing a webpage at GeoCities and hope to have more of my family history there in the near future.
I welcome inquiries and will be glad to exchange information with anyone who feels we might share a mutual ancestor.
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