WOODROUGH, BLAKELY, FLOYD, BASS, HOLLAND, PIATT, OGLE, VOLLMER, RICHARDSON, DE VALCOURT, HOLLAND, BRYANT, CALMES, PIATT, HART, ODUM, BASS, BASSE, RUFFNER, RUDD, GALLOPIN,LENDRUM, BUCKNER, HOUGHTON

Vera Wynelle Berryhill

F, #1574, b. 12 July 1925, d. 6 June 2000

Father*

Linder Rinaldo Berryhill b. 5 Feb 1900, d. 24 Jan 1955

Mother*

Vera Maurine Floyd b. 9 Nov 1906, d. 17 Mar 1977

Charts

Zachariah Davis
WILLIAM BASSE
ZACHARIAS DAVIS

Relationship

1st cousin 1 time removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 1 time removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

12 July 1925

Vera Wynelle Berryhill was born on 12 July 1925 at Cochran, Bleckley County, GA.

She was the daughter of Linder Rinaldo Berryhill and Vera Maurine Floyd.

MARRIAGE*

14 November 1953

She married John Silas Gardner, son of James Henry Gardner and Louetta Sawyer, on 14 November 1953 at GA.

Death*

6 June 2000

She died after a six year fight with ovarian cancer.¹

Burial*

10 June 2000

She was buried at the Coody-Berryhill Cemetery.¹

Address*

Vera Wynelle Berryhill lived at Rt. 1 Box 480, Malgene Dr., Cochran, GA.

Employment*

She was employed at Secretary WRAFB.

Married Name

1946

As of 1946,her married name was Davidson.

Married Name

14 November 1953

As of 14 November 1953,her married name was Gardner.

Residence*

1990

She lived in 1990 at Rt. 1 Box 117-G5, Cochran, Georgia 31014.

Family

John Silas Gardner b. 24 January 1922, d. 19 December 1971

MARRIAGE*

14 November 1953

She married John Silas Gardner, son of James Henry Gardner and Louetta Sawyer, on 14 November 1953 at GA.

Last Edited

17 Sep 2002

Citations

[S8] Family information.

Wallace Edward Berryhill

M, #1543, b. 14 July 1920, d. 31 August 1921

Father*

Lucian Osmond Berryhill b. 28 Feb 1896, d. 18 Jun 1932

Mother*

Viola (Shug) Floyd b. 20 Mar 1900, d. 24 Jun 2002

Charts

Zachariah Davis
WILLIAM BASSE
ZACHARIAS DAVIS

Relationship

1st cousin 1 time removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 1 time removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

14 July 1920

Wallace Edward Berryhill was born on 14 July 1920 at Cochran, Bleckley County, GA.

He was the son of Lucian Osmond Berryhill and Viola (Shug) Floyd.

Death*

31 August 1921

He died on 31 August 1921 at Cochran, GA, at age 1.

Last Edited

17 Aug 1994

William Berryhill¹

M, #4415

Father*

Samuel Berryhill Sr.¹

Mother*

Laura Antionette Sauls¹ b. 15 Apr 1846, d. 22 Jan 1908

William Berryhill||p24.htm#i4415|Samuel Berryhill Sr.||p23.htm#i3458|Laura Antionette Sauls|b. 15 Apr 1846\nd. 22 Jan 1908|p111.htm#i3459||||Laura A. Sauls|b. 15 Apr 1846\nd. 22 Jan 1908|p111.htm#i3459|Theopolis Sauls||p111.htm#i4395|Elizabeth Hart|b. 31 Aug 1804\nd. 1847|p67.htm#i4389|

William Berryhill was the son of Samuel Berryhill Sr. and Laura Antionette Sauls.¹

Last Edited

22 Mar 2006

Citations

[S580] Mary McIntyre, "Mary McIntyre," e-mail to Margot Woodrough, March 2006.

Elena Bertram of Bothal (Castle)¹

F, #2648

Father*

Sir Robert Bertram of Bothal_(Castle)

Elena Bertram of Bothal (Castle)||p24.htm#i2648|Sir Robert Bertram of Bothal_(Castle)||p24.htm#i2663||||||||||||||||

Elena Bertram of Bothal (Castle) was the daughter of Sir Robert Bertram of Bothal_(Castle).

MARRIAGE*

She married Sir Robert Ogle, son of Sir Robert Ogle and Joan Hepple.

Married Name

Her married name was Ogle of Bothal (Castle).

Family

Sir Robert Ogle d. circa 1355

Child

Sir Robert Ogle+ b. c 1351, d. c 1409

Last Edited

17 Aug 1994

Citations

[S5] Sir Henry A. Ogle, Ogle and Bothal.

Sir Robert Bertram of Bothal_(Castle)¹

M, #2663

MARRIAGE*

Sir Robert Bertram of Bothal_(Castle) married an unknown person.

Biography*

Bothal Castle dates back to 1343 when Robert de Bertram obtained from Edward the third, permission to renovate his mansion at Bothal. This great old castle came by descent from the Ogles to whom it came by marriage. In the church of St. Andrew adjoining the castle, the genealogy of the Ogles including seven lords and thirty knights is painted in old black letters on tablets on the walls.

Family

Child

Elena Bertram of Bothal (Castle)+

Last Edited

17 Aug 1994

Citations

[S5] Sir Henry A. Ogle, Ogle and Bothal.

Monteen Bethune¹

F, #3049

MARRIAGE*

2 February 1946

Monteen Bethune married Cecil Davis, son of Clifford "Cliff" Davis and Walter M. Floyd, on 2 February 1946.¹

Married Name

2 February 1946

As of 2 February 1946,her married name was Davis.

Family

Cecil Davis b. 30 November 1919, d. 15 December 1981

Last Edited

7 Apr 2000

Citations

[S471] Letter, Doris Dixon to MVW, Feb 29 2000.

Rose Bienvenu

F, #481

Father*

Theodule Bienvenu

Mother*

Marie Celeste Fontenet

Rose Bienvenu||p24.htm#i481|Theodule Bienvenu||p24.htm#i482|Marie Celeste Fontenet||p59.htm#i483|||||||||||||

Rose Bienvenu was the daughter of Theodule Bienvenu and Marie Celeste Fontenet.

MARRIAGE*

21 November 1859

She married John Auguste de Valcourt, son of Theodore Jean de Valcourt and Marie Catherine Felonise Guidry, on 21 November 1859.

Married Name

21 November 1859

As of 21 November 1859,her married name was de Valcourt.

Family

John Auguste de Valcourt

Last Edited

11 Jun 1998

Theodule Bienvenu

M, #482

MARRIAGE*

Theodule Bienvenu married Marie Celeste Fontenet.

Family

Marie Celeste Fontenet

Child

Rose Bienvenu

Last Edited

3 May 1999

Mary Biggs

F, #2488

MARRIAGE*

Mary Biggs married Captain James Ogle, son of Joseph Ogle and Sarah Winters.

Married Name

Her married name was Ogle.

Family

Captain James Ogle b. 1 June 1753, d. 1830

Children

Last Edited

17 Aug 1994

Pelagie Biron¹

F, #4619, b. 28 March 1785

MARRIAGE*

Pelagie Biron married Francois David Morin at Canada.¹

Birth*

28 March 1785

She was born on 28 March 1785 at St. Francois, Yamaska, Quebec, Canada.²

Married Name

Her married name was Morin.¹

Family

Francois David Morin b. 1775

Child

Julia Morin+¹ b. 10 Oct 1824

Last Edited

8 Sep 2008

Citations

[S591] Shirley Black, "Shirley Black," e-mail to MVW, September 12, 2006.
[S611] Unknown author, "unknown short title," e-mail to unknown recipient.

William Bittman

M, #3289

MARRIAGE*

2 June 1903

William Bittman married Josephine Wimmer, daughter of George Wimmer Sr. and Elizabeth Hartman, on 2 June 1903 at Albany, Sterns Co., MI.¹

Family

Josephine Wimmer b. 1872

Last Edited

10 Dec 2008

Citations

[S463] "Sebastian Wimmer Diary."

Richard Blackledge¹

M, #2914

Charts

William Basse

MARRIAGE*

Richard Blackledge married Ann Basse, daughter of Andrew Basse Sr. and Elizabeth Smith.

Family

Ann Basse

Last Edited

1 Dec 1999

Citations

[S1] Bass Family, Book, 1961 State Archives of Georgia.

Mary Elizabeth Blackshear

F, #1598

MARRIAGE*

say 1916

Mary Elizabeth Blackshear married Edward Taylor Wimberly say 1916.

Married Name

say 1916

As of say 1916,her married name was Wimberly.

Family

Edward Taylor Wimberly

Child

Mary Wimberly d. 1 Mar 1999

Last Edited

17 Aug 1994

Margaret Brumbelow Blackstone¹

F, #3972

Charts

Annie Jane Holland
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

5th great-grandmother of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

5th great-grandmother of Page Annette Woodrough.

MARRIAGE*

Margaret Brumbelow Blackstone married James Marshal Mullis.¹

Married Name

Her married name was Mullis.¹

Family

James Marshal Mullis

Child

Solomon Mullis+¹ b. 1795

Last Edited

10 May 2004

Citations

[S492] Cara Murray, "Bryant Family," e-mail to MVW.

Charity Blackwell

F, #379

MARRIAGE*

Charity Blackwell married Capt. Daniel Vliet, son of Jan (Janse the brewer) Vliet and Margaret Brinson.

Married Name

Her married name was Vliet.

Family

Capt. Daniel Vliet b. 1725, d. 1810

Last Edited

5 Jun 1998

Rozelle Blaine¹

F, #5134, b. 1832

MARRIAGE*

Rozelle Blaine married William Derocher.¹

Birth*

1832

She was born in 1832.¹

Family

William Derocher b. circa 1820

Last Edited

6 Aug 2008

Citations

[S611] Unknown author, "unknown short title," e-mail to unknown recipient.

(?) Blakely¹

M, #183, b. circa 1785, d. before 1830

Charts

BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

4th great-grandfather of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

4th great-grandfather of Page Annette Woodrough.

Reference

1000

Birth*

circa 1785

(?) Blakely was born circa 1785 at England.

MARRIAGE*

circa 1800

She came with four children all of whom say they were born in England.

Death*

before 1830

He died before 1830 His wife, Sarah, shown as head of household in the Pittsburgh census for 1830.²

Immigration*

4 September 1816

He immigrated on 4 September 1816 Joseph & family.....Packet Halifax....Sept 4, 1816 This is a note LWG found in an index. Do not know if this is the same Joseph or even if Joseph is the father of James, but will keep for further research. MVW 10-01
2008 - I hired an English researcher to try to find the Blakely family in Blackburn. No luck! Between us I believe we've searched all available records. In an attempt to understand why the Blakely family left England I did a bit of research. The very early 19th century was a time of social unrest. A group calling themselves the Hampden Clubs attempted to rectify the situation. The Hampden Clubs were active in the Lancashire area and possibly further research should keep this in mind. The Blakely family had money when they arrived in America, and the since the Hampden Clubs focuses on the middle and lower classes it's possible they were attempting to preserve their wealth. Here is a quote: The chief way in which industrialism affected government and politics was in its conferring new wealth and power upon the growing middle class of enterprising traders, manufacturers and financiers (we know that James Blakely was involved in the banking industry), and in it creation of a new industrial proletariat. Just as the landowners were in general a bulwark of conservatism, so the middle classes were one of the prime movers of change. The captains of industry and the self-made millowners of Lancashire...were the first generation of a new class which would inevitably resent the old aristocratic idleness and contempt for earned incomes. Taken from "Europe Since Napoleon" by David Thomson.

In reading this August 2010 I am struck with the thought that this is our man and the reason above is correct. Just today I noted from James Blakely's obituary that the entire family including James' father emmigrated. Evidently James' father died before 1830 as Sarah Blakely, his wife is shown on the 1830 census as head of household.

I suspect that the Blakelys were among this new generation and either they were fearful of the social unrest or they sought expanded opportunities by coming to America. People only move when there is high motivation - fear or money.

Note*

2001

In 2001 I went through an entire book called History of Blackburn in October of 2001 at the LDS library in Salt Lake. There was no mention of a Blakely family at all even though there were many families listed. The book was published in 1877 and did mention the Ashton and Houghton families. In fact, I looked at all the books on the appropriate shelf and didn't find a clue.

Note

February 2002

In February 2002 I searched the IGI file at the LDS site and found Alice, James and John as children of Josiah Blakely and Alice Barlow. Birthdates were close but not right. Coincidence? Or is this our person?

Family

Sarah or Alice (?) b. 1781, d. 8 July 1854

Children

James B. Blakely+ b. 15 Jun 1804, d. 19 Jun 1882
William Blakely b. c 1806, d. 8 Aug 1879
Alicia Blakely+ b. 1 Dec 1810, d. 1 Mar 1901
John Simpson Blakely+ b. c 1812, d. 12 Feb 1877

Last Edited

28 Aug 2010

Citations

Name Joseph is just a guess. What follows is LWG's discussion on possibility of his name being either William or Joseph. Now as for William. Here's my theory. Yes, William was an important name - to James. It was the name of his younger brother, and weren't they in business together in Pittsburgh? John Simpson named his only son Walter James - for HER father and (most likely) his brother, James. So to me it looks like the brothers were close,but the father is aloof! James did eventually name a son Joseph - who became known as Fath. Aloysius! Because there is no mention of the father's name in the handed down "family
stories", but Pappy recorded the mother's name - question? Did he perhaps abandon his family? And why would James Blakely, in Dec. 1835, give Joseph Blakely 40 acres of land in Columbiana Co., Ohio.? His son, Joseph wasn't born until 1847! Personally, I think the father of James B. Blakely was Joseph, husband of Sarah. However, we now know that Sarah's husband was dead before 1830 so he cannot be the recipient of the land in i835. The 2nd reason I think Joseph is the father is the listing in the "Passenger Arrivals ath the Port Of Philadelphia 1800-1819" which lists on pg. 60, a Jos. Blakely & fam. on the Packet Halifax on Sept 4 1816. Only a passenger list giving the names of those included in the "& Fam." part would help clear this up. There is strong family history stating that the Blakely family came from Blackburn in Lancashire England. In fact, MVW has some very old books that are county directories of the area. The books appear to have been purchased by someone doing family research years ago, or perhaps they were items used by James Blakely in his commerce which involved letters of credit for people traveling to England in the mid 1850's. There is also a strong family tradition of links to the Ashton and Houghton families of England, but nothing of substance has ever been found. Certainly the Blakely family that arrived in the early 1800's was not poor. They were very quickly integrated into the upper classes of Pittsburgh society and had sufficient resources to speculate in land. The Blakely father likely lived through the first third of the century, but certainly was dead by 1830 when Sarah Blakely appeared on the census as head of household.
[S50] 1830 Census;.

Ada Elizabeth Blakely

F, #421, b. 29 August 1847, d. 13 June 1866

Father*

John Simpson Blakely b. c 1812, d. 12 Feb 1877

Mother*

Jemima Cecelia Fortune b. 1809, d. 24 Aug 1898

Ada Elizabeth Blakely|b. 29 Aug 1847\nd. 13 Jun 1866|p24.htm#i421|John Simpson Blakely|b. c 1812\nd. 12 Feb 1877|p25.htm#i185|Jemima Cecelia Fortune|b. 1809\nd. 24 Aug 1898|p59.htm#i186|(?) Blakely|b. c 1785\nd. b 1830|p24.htm#i183|Sarah o. A. (?)|b. 1781\nd. 8 Jul 1854|p8.htm#i422|Walter Fortune|b. c 1780\nd. a 1850|p60.htm#i255|Ann Craft||p38.htm#i706|

Charts

BLAKELY

Relationship

1st cousin 4 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 4 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

29 August 1847

Ada Elizabeth Blakely was born on 29 August 1847 at OH.¹

She was the daughter of John Simpson Blakely and Jemima Cecelia Fortune.

Death*

13 June 1866

On 13 June 1866 Her obituary reads: "At St. Louis, of consumption on Wednesday the 13th, Ada E., daughter of John S. and Jemima Blakely, in her 19th year. Funeral services will be held at 2 o'clock, Friday at the Church of the Annunciation."

Burial

14 June 1866

She was buried on 14 June 1866 at St. Louis, MO.²

FUNERAL*

14 June 1866

She was buried on 14 June 1866from at Church of Annunciation, St. Louis, MO.³

CENSUS1850*

1850

Shown living with her parents.

Last Edited

19 Sep 2005

Citations

[S52] 1850 Census;.
[S511] St. Louis Cem., # 150495 Calvery Cemetery.
[S36] Clippings, various dates.

Alice Theresa Blakely

F, #727, b. 29 May 1845, d. say 1850

Father*

James B. Blakely b. 15 Jun 1804, d. 19 Jun 1882

Mother*

Susananna Smyth b. 15 Sep 1804, d. 12 Nov 1885

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

2nd great-grandaunt of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

2nd great-grandaunt of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

29 May 1845

Alice Theresa Blakely was born on 29 May 1845 at Pittsburgh, PA.¹

She was the daughter of James B. Blakely and Susananna Smyth.

Baptism

1 June 1845

She was baptized on 1 June 1845 at Pittsburgh, PA.¹

Death*

say 1850

She died say 1850 at Pittsburgh, PA, Does not appear on 1850 or 1860 census.

Last Edited

16 Apr 2006

Citations

[S38] Baptismal Entry St. Paul, Diocese of Pittsburgh
Synod Hall
125 N. Craig Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
412-621-6217 Fax 412-621-6237.

Alicia Blakely

F, #720, b. 1 December 1810, d. 1 March 1901

PROBABLY ALICE BLAKELY

Father*

(?) Blakely b. c 1785, d. b 1830

Mother*

Sarah or Alice (?) b. 1781, d. 8 Jul 1854

Alicia Blakely|b. 1 Dec 1810\nd. 1 Mar 1901|p24.htm#i720|(?) Blakely|b. c 1785\nd. b 1830|p24.htm#i183|Sarah or Alice (?)|b. 1781\nd. 8 Jul 1854|p8.htm#i422|||||||(?) Houghton||p76.htm#i3825||||

Charts

BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

3rd great-grandaunt of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

3rd great-grandaunt of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

1 December 1810

Found her baptism record giving age 16 at baptism in 1828. Census record give birthplace as England.¹

Alicia Blakely was the daughter of (?) Blakely and Sarah or Alice (?).

Baptism

20 July 1828

She was baptized on 20 July 1828 at Roman Catholic; St. Patrick/St. Paul, Pittsburgh, PA, Sponsors Jacobo and Catherine Cochran.²

MARRIAGE*

27 November 1832

She married Calvin Dodge on 27 November 1832 at Pittsburgh, PA.

Death*

1 March 1901

She died on 1 March 1901 at Washington, D.C., at age 90 Death date from Sebastian Wimmer's Diary also have copy of death certificate.³

ALICE DODGE DEATH DERTIFICATE

Burial*

3 March 1901

She was buried on 3 March 1901 at Washington, D.C., She was buried at Congressional Cemetery.

Biography*

Alice, the third child of our matriarch Sarah [Haughton] Blakely, was born in Lancashire County, England on December 1, 1810. For many years, Alice was an unknown sister having never been mentioned in any of the writings or memoirs of the descendants of her brothers, James and John. She was discovered in 1998 when baptismal and marriage records were received from the Diocese of Pittsburgh.

Alice was just a little girl of eight when she arrived in America with her mother, Sarah, and brothers, James, William and John. What a frightening journey that must have been for a child so young!

Admittedly, little is known about the daughter, Alice, her husband and children. What is included in this book was taken from records received from the Diocese of Pittsburgh, newspaper clippings, census records and information supplied by a descendant of one of her children, John K. Hayes.

Alice converted to the Catholic faith and was baptized at St. Patrick's Church in Pittsburgh on July 20, 1828, the same day as her brother, John. The church record said she was sixteen years old and an Anabaptist convert, but she was actually seventeen at the time.

Four years later, on the 27th of November 1832, Alice became the bride of Calvin Dodge, at St. Patrick's Church in Pittsburgh, her aunt and uncle, James and Susanna Blakely, as her witnesses.

According to the 1837 Business Directory of Pittsburgh, Calvin Dodge had a dry goods and grocery store on 5th Street, between Wood and Smithfield, in Pittsburgh.

By 1850, Alice and Calvin were the parents of six children. The census of that year lists Calvin, age 41 his occupation given as painter and his skill level as "skilled-construction", his estate valued at $4500. ; his place of birth as Connecticut. Alice, age 38 and the children: Mary, age 15; James, age 13; John, 8; Francis, 6 and Alice, age 2. Also living in the household is the matriarch, Sarah Blakely, age 70.

Missing from this census is their daughter, Sarah Ann Dodge, born June 29, 1840 and baptized July 22, 1840 with John Michel (pronounced Mitchell) and Sarah Blakely, her grandmother, as sponsors. It is, therefore, presumed that this child died in infancy.

The 1860 census of Pittsburgh shows Calvin has aged only six year in a ten-year period, and Alice has aged nine years. In fact, they are both forty-seven. 11 This was a common phenomena usually caused by a guess from the person supplying the information. Calvin's occupation was 'master painter' with a skill level as “master craftsman.”^{22 He was a painter of houses and buildings, not portraits..}

Also listed in the household, 1860 census of Pittsburgh:
James B. Dodge, his age given as 22 and his occupation as salesman, peddler.
John C. Dodge, age given as 16. He, too, worked as a salesman, peddler.
Francis W., age given as 14.
Alice, age 11
Ellen, age 7.

The family appeared to be doing well, financially and a domestic was employed in the household to assist Alice in caring for her large family. Tragically, in May of 1863, Calvin Dodge drowned in the Monongahela River, leaving a young widow and several children still at home.

The following article appeared in The Daily Pittsburgh Gazette, Monday, May 25, 1863:

DEATH BY DROWNING

On Sunday afternoon, between two and three o'clock, a party of young men, in rowing a skiff on the Monongahela River, in the vicinity of the Brownsville wharf boat, discovered the body of a man floating or rather lying near the stern of the steamer "Gallatin". The body was hauled ashore, when a crowd soon collected, but no one knew who the deceased was until John J. Mitchell, 33 John J. Mitchell was a family member mentioned elsewhere in this book.Esq., came up and identified the remains as those of Calvin Dodge, a well known citizen of the Eighth Ward. The body was then removed to the coffin rooms of Mr. Devore, on Grant Street, where an inquest was held by Coroner McClung. No evidence was elicited tending to show how the deceased lost his life, and a verdict of "death by drowning" was rendered.
     The deceased was a very worthy and esteemed citizen, and carried on the      business of painting---his office being located on Fourth Street. We learned      that he left his residence, on Forbes street, about eight o'clock on Wednesday      evening last, not advising his family as to where he was going, or what his      intentions were. As he frequently lay on the sofa all night, in warm weather,      no search was made for him until Thursday, when it was found that he had      not been in the house during the night. Enquiries were then made in every      direction, but no tidings were heard of him until his remains were found as      stated. He was about fifty-five years of age, and was a very industrious and      useful citizen.

A brief notice in the same newspaper said this:

     DODGE--On Thursday, May 21st, CALVIN DODGE, age 55 years
     The funeral will take place this afternoon at 2 o'clock from his former      residence, 86 Forbes Street. The friends of the family are respectfully
     invited to attend without further notice.

The census of 1870 listed the son, James Blakely Dodge, as head of household, and the mother, Alice, as keeping house. The rest of the household, in 1870 was:
John C., age 26, brother, occupation given as Wall Paper Dealer, with a skill level as entrepreneur, merchant.
Ella, age 18, sister
Alice Adams, age 24, sister
Nora McGowen, a domestic

The 1880 census of Pittsburgh, enumerated in June of that year, showed James, the son, age now 38, head of the household and owner of a bookstore.
Alice, now 68, widowed; and Ella, age 24.

Alice [Blakely] Dodge spent the last years of her life at the home of her daughter. Her nephew, Sebastian Wimmer, kept a daily diary and on March 1, 1901, he wrote:

     Old Mrs. Dodge died at 7.40 a.m. today. 90 years old, at the house of           her daughter Mrs. Alice McFadden in Washington, DC. She was the           sister of James Blakely, my father in law, who died at St. Mary's in           1882.

Alice [Blakely] Dodge was buried at Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D. C. following her funeral Mass, held at St. Stephen’s Church. She was buried in the same lot as her son-in-law, William H. McFadden.

Married Name

27 November 1832

As of 27 November 1832,her married name was Dodge.

Residence*

1852

She lived in 1852 at Pittsburgh, PA; An Alice Blakely is shown in the City Directory for 1852-1860 living at 156 Pike St. Do not know if this is the same person.

Anecdote*

1857

In 1857 She attended wedding of Lavinia Blakely and Sebastian Wimmer.³

CENSUS1860*

1860

She appeared on the census in 1860 at Forbes Street 8th Ward, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA; She and Calvin are living there with family.⁴

CENSUS1870*

1870

She appeared on the census in 1870 at Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA; In 1870 I found: Alice Dodge, age 48 (amazing - she only aged 1 year since the 1860 census!)
James B., age given as 52, but he's 32 so could be a typo in transcription.
John C., age 26
Ella, age 18
Alice ADAMS, age 24, but she's probably closer to age 22 than 24.⁵

Residence

1880

She lived in 1880 at Forbes Street Ward 7, Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA; 1880 Census - Pittsburgh that Alice Blakely Dodge gives her
marital status as "Divorced". and the only members of the household then are
Alice, her son, James B. and Ella. They are living on Forbes Str., Ward 7
in 1880.

CENSUS1880*

1880

She appeared on the Census in 1880 at Pittsburgh, PA;      Census Place:     Pittsburgh, Allegheny, Pennsylvania 7th ward
     Source:     FHL Film 1255092 National Archives Film T9-1092 Page 244D      Relation     Sex     Marr     Race     Age     Birthplace
Jas. B. DODGE     Self     M     S     W     38     PA
     Occ:     Book Store     Fa: ENG     Mo: ENG
Alice DODGE     Mother     F     W     W     68     ENG
     Occ:     At Home     Fa: ENG     Mo: ENG
Ella DODGE     Sister     F     S     W     24     PA
     Occ:     At Home     Fa: CT     Mo: ENG.⁶

CENSUS1900*

1900

She appeared on the census in 1900 at Washington, D.C.; The 1900 Federal Census has Alice Dodge living with Alice McFadden at 715 24th NW, Washington, DC.
Her date of birth is given as Jan., 1810.
At Ancestry.com - 1900 Census, Washington City, Enumeration Dist. 29, Image 27 of 44.....line 36......Alice McFadden is widowed. Living with her is her dau. Stella, born Nov. 1885; her son, Arthur, born Nov. 1899 (hard to read); her sister Ella, born Sept. 1855 and the mother Alice Dodge, who gives her "age last birthday" as 91, but the written date appears to be 1811. Something wrong there.¹

Residence

1901

She lived in 1901 at Washington, D.C.; According to her death certificate she died at home at 715 24th St. NW Washington, D.C.

Family

Calvin Dodge b. 1809, d. 21 May 1863

MARRIAGE*

27 November 1832

She married Calvin Dodge on 27 November 1832 at Pittsburgh, PA.

Children

Mary Elizabeth Dodge⁷ b. 12 Jan 1836
James B Dodge⁷ b. 18 Dec 1837, d. 19 Mar 1895
Sarah Anna Dodge² b. 29 Jun 1840
John Chrysostom Dodge⁷ b. 23 Oct 1842
Francis (Frank) W. Dodge+² b. 8 Apr 1845
Alice Rose Dodge+ b. 6 Aug 1848
Ella Dodge⁷ b. Sep 1855

Last Edited

29 May 2008

Citations

[S59] 1900 Census;.
[S38] Baptismal Entry St. Paul, Diocese of Pittsburgh
Synod Hall
125 N. Craig Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
412-621-6217 Fax 412-621-6237.
[S463] "Sebastian Wimmer Diary."
[S54] 1860 Census;.
[S55] 1870 Census;, Laura Steneck searched this census on line.
[S56] 1880 Census;, They are in ED #110, First Precinct, 7th Ward...
[S52] 1850 Census;.

Carolyn Blakely¹

F, #3818, b. 1909

Father*

Eugene J. Blakely¹ b. 8 Mar 1873

Mother*

Carrie (?)¹ b. 1876

Carolyn Blakely|b. 1909|p24.htm#i3818|Eugene J. Blakely|b. 8 Mar 1873|p24.htm#i232|Carrie (?)|b. 1876|p4.htm#i3815|William J. Blakely|b. 26 Apr 1839\nd. 7 Jan 1877|p25.htm#i56|Mary Gensheimer|b. 1850\nd. c 1930|p62.htm#i200|||||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

1909

Carolyn Blakely was born in 1909 at PA.¹

She was the daughter of Eugene J. Blakely and Carrie (?).¹

Last Edited

13 Aug 2003

Citations

[S518] 1930 Census;.

Edward Courtney Piatt Blakely

M, #39, b. 11 October 1908, d. 7 April 1918

Father*

Stephens Laurie Blakely b. 23 Apr 1878, d. 24 Feb 1959

Mother*

Jane DeValcourt Stamps Piatt b. 12 Mar 1882, d. 6 Oct 1928

Charts

William Landrum
De Calmes
PETER LANDRUM
SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

Granduncle of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

Granduncle of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

11 October 1908

Edward Courtney Piatt Blakely was born on 11 October 1908 at Beechwood, Covington, Kenton County, KY, Born at 4:30 in the morning.^1,2

He was the son of Stephens Laurie Blakely and Jane DeValcourt Stamps Piatt.

Baptism

1 November 1908

He was baptized on 1 November 1908.¹

Death*

7 April 1918

He died on 7 April 1918 at Fort Mitchell, Kenton County, KY, at age 9 "Sunday, April 7th, 1918 - Little Courtney died this morning at ten minutes to one after an illness of about 4 weeks. The little fellow awoke one Saturday morning March 9th with a headache. I jokingly told him it was no use to be sick on a holiday, but he was really sick and rapidly developed pneumonia. Everything was done for him and a few days before his death he apparently had begun to recover. He received the Last Sacraments on the 28th of March. During the little fellows' suffering he told me "Father, I love you the best of all" and I believe that he did. At least all during his little life he showed most affection for me and his greatest pleasure was that he looked like me. It is so hard for his mother and me not to despair but we are comforted much by the thought that he is happy in heaven now and is intercessing for us and that as long as we live, and when we are old and our children married and gone from us, we will always have a little boy.
     Tuesday, April 9th, 1918 - Courtney buried today at St. Mary's. High Mass at the Cathedral. John Menzies, Claude Johnson, John Read, Joe Kerr, Stanley Ashbrook and Logan Cambron pall bearers. Found Courtney's lessons prepared for his last day of school. One of them is marked "for father and mother to see". Another little poem is as follows, as I remember it:
          All things bright and beautiful
          All things great and small
          All things good and wonderful
          The Lord God made them all."

Burial*

9 April 1918

He was buried on 9 April 1918 at St. Mary, Fort Mitchell, Kenton County, KY.¹

Last Edited

7 Sep 2009

Citations

[S17] SLB Date diary, Date diary, about 1950 MVW file.
[S35] Lendrum Blakely.

Elizabeth Ashton Blakely

F, #46, b. 28 June 1883, d. 29 May 1948

Father*

Laurie John Blakely b. 4 Mar 1843, d. 21 Jan 1917

Mother*

Lily Hudson Lendrum b. 13 Sep 1852, d. 2 Apr 1922

Charts

William Landrum
PETER LANDRUM
SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

Great-grandaunt of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

Great-grandaunt of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

28 June 1883

Bible entry : Born on June 28th 1883 that day the sixth anniversary of the happy marriage of baby's parents. Baptism Sponsors: Bernard & Elizabeth Becker.^1,2

Elizabeth Ashton Blakely was the daughter of Laurie John Blakely and Lily Hudson Lendrum.

Death*

29 May 1948

SLB Date Diary says she died May 9, 1948.

Religion*

She was Catholic.

Biography*

(Per Aunt Aileen J. Ryan's notes) Elizabeth Blakely was known as Mother Agatha of the Order of the Visitation) Elizabeth, after several years of the social life, followed her sister Susan Houghton Blakely (also known as Mother Jane Frances Blakely) into the convent, entering at Wheeling, West Virginia, and eventually coming to Cardome "on Loan" as a teacher of history. She as Mother Agatha also served for a time as Mother Superior. She has predeceased Susie by many years. In 1922 she lived in Georgetown, KY - per her mother's obituary notice.

CENSUS1900*

1 June 1900

She was included on CENSUS 1900 on 1 June 1900 at Covington, Kenton County, KY.³

Occupation*

circa 1910

Her religious name was Sister Mary Agatha. She was known to family as "Aunt Beth."

Last Edited

7 Sep 2009

Citations

[S17] SLB Date diary, Date diary, about 1950 MVW file.
[S35] Lendrum Blakely.
[S59] 1900 Census;.

Eugene J. Blakely

M, #232, b. 8 March 1873

Father*

William James Blakely b. 26 Apr 1839, d. 7 Jan 1877

Mother*

Mary Gensheimer b. 1850, d. c 1930

Eugene J. Blakely|b. 8 Mar 1873|p24.htm#i232|William James Blakely|b. 26 Apr 1839\nd. 7 Jan 1877|p25.htm#i56|Mary Gensheimer|b. 1850\nd. c 1930|p62.htm#i200|James B. Blakely|b. 15 Jun 1804\nd. 19 Jun 1882|p24.htm#i50|Susananna Smyth|b. 15 Sep 1804\nd. 12 Nov 1885|p115.htm#i51|||||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY

Relationship

1st cousin 3 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 3 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

8 March 1873

Eugene J. Blakely was born on 8 March 1873 at Erie, PA.¹

He was the son of William James Blakely and Mary Gensheimer.

MARRIAGE*

circa 1897

He married Carrie (?) circa 1897.²

Biography*

He must have had children as his letterhead in 1943 says "E.J. Blakely and Son."

CENSUS1880*

1880

He appeared on the Census in 1880 at Erie, PA.³

CENSUS1930*

1930

He appeared on the census in 1930 at 1st Ward, Erie city, Erie, PA.²

Residence

2 March 1943

He lived on 2 March 1943 at 28 West 11th St., Erie, PA.

Employment*

1943

He was an Insurance Agent by Letter in file to SLB at time of Paul Blakely's death. in 1943 at Insurance Agent; Great American Indemnity Co., Erie, PA.

Residence*

circa 1955

He lived circa 1955.

Family

Carrie (?) b. 1876

MARRIAGE*

circa 1897

He married Carrie (?) circa 1897.²

Children

Eugene J. Blakely Jr.⁴ b. 1898, d. a 1994
J. Kenneth Blakely⁴ b. 1902
Carolyn Blakely² b. 1909

Last Edited

4 Sep 2009

Citations

[S56] 1880 Census;, Shown living with his mother and grandfather.
[S518] 1930 Census;.
[S56] 1880 Census;, T9-1127 P. 210C.
[S61] 1920 Census;.

Eugene J. Blakely Jr.¹

M, #3816, b. 1898, d. after 1994

Father*

Eugene J. Blakely¹ b. 8 Mar 1873

Mother*

Carrie (?)¹ b. 1876

Eugene J. Blakely Jr.|b. 1898\nd. a 1994|p24.htm#i3816|Eugene J. Blakely|b. 8 Mar 1873|p24.htm#i232|Carrie (?)|b. 1876|p4.htm#i3815|William J. Blakely|b. 26 Apr 1839\nd. 7 Jan 1877|p25.htm#i56|Mary Gensheimer|b. 1850\nd. c 1930|p62.htm#i200|||||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

1898

Eugene J. Blakely Jr. was born in 1898 at PA.¹

He was the son of Eugene J. Blakely and Carrie (?).¹

Death*

after 1994

This is a guess, but there was a Eugene J. Blakely living in Maryland in 1994.
246 Hereford Ct. Millersville, md. 21108.

Last Edited

4 Sep 2009

Citations

[S61] 1920 Census;.

Frances Mary Blakely

F, #704, b. 20 November 1849, d. 24 May 1939

FRANCES MARY BLAKELY

Father*

John Simpson Blakely b. c 1812, d. 12 Feb 1877

Mother*

Jemima Cecelia Fortune b. 1809, d. 24 Aug 1898

Frances Mary Blakely|b. 20 Nov 1849\nd. 24 May 1939|p24.htm#i704|John Simpson Blakely|b. c 1812\nd. 12 Feb 1877|p25.htm#i185|Jemima Cecelia Fortune|b. 1809\nd. 24 Aug 1898|p59.htm#i186|(?) Blakely|b. c 1785\nd. b 1830|p24.htm#i183|Sarah o. A. (?)|b. 1781\nd. 8 Jul 1854|p8.htm#i422|Walter Fortune|b. c 1780\nd. a 1850|p60.htm#i255|Ann Craft||p38.htm#i706|

Charts

BLAKELY

Relationship

1st cousin 4 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 4 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

20 November 1849

Frances Mary Blakely was born on 20 November 1849 at OH The 1850 Census shows her living with parents in East Liverbppol but gives birth place as Ireland.^1,2

She was the daughter of John Simpson Blakely and Jemima Cecelia Fortune.

Death*

24 May 1939

On 24 May 1939 She is mentioned in her sister's obituary 1920.¹

Burial*

26 May 1939

She was buried on 26 May 1939 at St. Louis, MO.³

Name Variation

Frances Mary Blakely was also known as "Aunt Frank".

CENSUS1880*

1880

The 1880 census shows a Frank M Blakely "brother" living with Walter J. Blakely. Since the age is correct for this person, I believe that the census taker made an error.⁴

Occupation*

1880

She was in 1880 at School Teacher.⁵

CENSUS1900*

1900

In 1900 She is shown living with her brother Walter and his family.⁶

Biography*

7 October 1912

She is mentioned in her brothers obituary dated Oct. 7, 1912. A picture of Lilly Lendrum Blakely along with Imogene and Laurie J. Blakely Jr. includes someone called "Fanny". This is Francis. A note to SLB describes her as the family archivest.
In 1926 her address is given as: 4485 Pershing Ave. It is our old Berlin Ave. and she is just next to our old 1479.

CENSUS1920*

1920

She appeared on the census in 1920 at Benton Harbor, MI.⁷

Residence

1920

In 1920 Address according to her sister's obituary. Apparently they lived together.

Residence*

1920

She lived in 1920 at Benton Harbor, MI.

Residence

16 June 1926

On 16 June 1926 Letter from Imogene Blakely (Sr. Mary De Chantal) give her address as 4585 Pershing Avenue. "It is our old Berlin Avenue and she is just next to our old 4479."

Retirement*

1937

In 1937 Apparently she went to a retirement home in 1937 at the urging of her neice Imogene Blakely. Imogene packed up her things and eventually sent some to SLB. He preserved the dates and some pictures that eventually found their way to MVW among which are the drawings of Jemima and John Simpson Blakely. Evidently "Aunt Frank" was the family archivist.

LETTER*

21 November 1939

On 21 November 1939 Dear Stephens (SLB) Your letter reached me while I was in retreat so I have not been able to do much to Aunt Frank's things until the last few days. I am glad you liked the pictures. It is a slow job getting Aunt Franks things straightened out as I can not work long at a time and never saw such an accumulation of stuff - things I remember in the house years ago and I thought had been destroyed or disposed of long ago. I have not been able to go through her books carefully yet but I did empty one trunk with all sorts of odds and ends. You see, when I persuaded her to go out to St. Mary's two years ago I packed up her things as best I could while she was still in the humour and thought I could go through them more in detail later, but I just never got to it. I did, however, find some memorandum books in this trunk in which are written quite a number of dates of both births and deaths. I am enclosing them in this, copied from the book. The page from the Latin prayer book is, to me, very interesting. I did not know she had all these things, it was so hard to get her to tell me anything.
Then, I am sending separately some photographs which I thought you might want; if you do not want to be burdened with them, just burn them as I can not keep so much stuff. When I die, there will be very few "treasures" to be found belonging to me. One thing I do regret is that Aunt Frank disposed of the old mahogany sideboard on which so many of her family were baptized. and on which Mass was celebrated in my grandfather's house in East Liverpool, Ohio. Another thing she sold was the handsome pie-crust table, they say there were only three of these tables in the U.S. Aunt Frank was so angry with me for entering the Convent that she sold the table to someone in Chicago because her name was Fortune, but no relative. I do not think anything can be done about it now, but I would have tried to keep her from it had I known it.
I hope you are well, I never hear from any of the family except Paul and that very seldom. I am very busy all the time and I suppose they are also. I shall not forget you when I get to Aunt Frank's books, goodness knows what I shall find. Give my love to Peggy. I hope you enjoy the photos. Lots of Love Sister Mary de Chantal (Imogene Blakely)
P.S I did not have a chance to send this letter, but I did look over the books and there is really nothing worth sending. The are in worse condition that I thought.

A second letter dated June 16, 1926 says: "Well I wrote to aunt Frank and received a long letter of exdplanation. I know just about as much when I finished reading it as I did when I began. The substance however was this; the pictures were those of her father's aunt and uncle, Susan and John Haughton. That makes them your and my great great aunt and uncle....The other pictures were those of my grandmother and grandfather Blakely (John Simpson and Jemima Fortune Blakely) taken (drawn) when they were 19 and 23 years old. (MVW has since donated these to the Ohio Historical Society.) Aunt Frank says you had copies of the four (this may explain the two sets).

FRANCIS MARY BLAKELY

Last Edited

17 Sep 2007

Citations

[S17] SLB Date diary, Date diary, about 1950 MVW file.
[S52] 1850 Census;, Place of birth from census.
[S511] St. Louis Cem., Calvery # 150496.
[S56] 1880 Census;, T9-0733 p. 226C
Note this same family counted T9-0723 p 39D There are discrepancies.
[S56] 1880 Census;.
[S59] 1900 Census;.
[S61] 1920 Census;.

Imogene Blakely

F, #189, b. circa 1884, d. September 1948

Father*

Walter James Blakely b. 18 Nov 1843, d. 7 Oct 1912

Mother*

Nannie Hawes b. 22 Feb 1853, d. 9 May 1903

Imogene Blakely|b. c 1884\nd. Sep 1948|p24.htm#i189|Walter James Blakely|b. 18 Nov 1843\nd. 7 Oct 1912|p25.htm#i187|Nannie Hawes|b. 22 Feb 1853\nd. 9 May 1903|p69.htm#i188|John S. Blakely|b. c 1812\nd. 12 Feb 1877|p25.htm#i185|Jemima C. Fortune|b. 1809\nd. 24 Aug 1898|p59.htm#i186|||||||

Charts

BLAKELY

Relationship

2nd cousin 3 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

2nd cousin 3 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

circa 1884

Imogene Blakely was born circa 1884.

She was the daughter of Walter James Blakely and Nannie Hawes.

Burial*

September 1948

She was buried in September 1948 at Calvary Cemetery, St. Louis, MO.

Death*

September 1948

She died in September 1948 at St. Louis, MO.

Religion*

She was Catholic.

LETTER

When "Aunt Sue" was asked by MVW about Imogene Blakely she replied as follows: "She was the daughter of Walter J. Blakely of St. Louis and was an only child who had all the advantages that a brilliant father with plenty of money could give. I visited them after my graduation from Cardome and was delighted to find that cousin Walter was giving a series of lectures at St. Louis University all on my beloved Shakespeare. Imo (we called her) would have none of it - she ended by joining the Little Sisters of the Poor and did marvelous work with them. The late Cardinal Glenn of St. Louis once visited this little community and when he saw Imo he said - "You don't belong here" to which she answered "That's what you think"!

Name Variation

Imogene Blakely was also known as Sr. Mary De Chantel.

LETTER*

She was mentioned in a letter Dear Stephens (SLB) Your letter reached me while I was in retreat so I have not been able to do much to Aunt Frank's things until the last few days. I am glad you liked the pictures. It is a slow job getting Aunt Franks things straightened out as I can not work long at a time and never saw such an accumulation of stuff - things I remember in the house hears ago and I thought had been destroyed or disposed of long ago. I have not been able to go through her books carefully yet but I did empty one trunk with all sorts of odds and ends. You see, when I persuaded her to go out to St. Mary's two years ago I packed up her things as best I could while she was still in the humour and thought I could go through them more in detail later, but I just never got to it. I did, however, find some memorandum books in this trunk in which re written quite a number of dates of both births and deaths. I am enclosing them in this, copied from the book. The page from the Latin prayer book is, to me, very interesting. I did not know she had all these things, it was so hard to get her to tell me anything.
Then, I am sending separately some photographs which I thought you might want; if you do not want to be burdened with them, just burn them as I can not keep so much stuff. When I die, there will be very few "treasures" to be found belonging to me. One thing I do regret is that Aunt Frank disposed of the old mahogany sideboard on which so many of her family were baptized. and on which Mass was celebrated in my grandfather's house in East Liverpool, Ohio. Another thing she sold was the handsome pie-crust table, they say there were only three of these tables in the U.s.. aunt Frank was so angry with me for entering the Convent that she sold the table to someone in Chicago because her name was Fortune, but no relative. I do not think anything can be done about it now, but I would have tried to keep her from it had I known it.
I hop you are well, I never hear from any of the family except Paul and that very seldom. I am very busy all the time and I suppose they are also. I shall not forget you when I get to Aunt Frank's books, goodness knows what I shall find. Give my love to Peggy. I hope you enjoy the photos. Lots of Love Sister Mary de Chantal
P.S I did not have a chance to send this letter, but I did look over the books and there is really nothing worth sending. The are in worse condition that I thought.

Residence

1909

When she lived at this address she was known as Miss Gene Blakely. She would not enter the convent for two more years.:CR:]

Employment*

1939

She was a Catholic nun; According to Susan H. Blakely "Aunt Sue" (Sr. Jane Frances) Imogene was called Sr. Mary de Chantel and was the only child of Walter and Nannie Hawes Blakely.

St. Mary's Infirmary 1536 Papin Street St. Louis, MO.

Residence*

1939

She lived in 1939 at St. Mary's Infirmary 1536 Papin, St. Louis, MO.

Residence

1945

She lived in 1945 at Mother House 1100 Bellevue Ave., St. Louis, MO; She was still living at this address in 1947.

Last Edited

18 Sep 2007

J. Kenneth Blakely¹

M, #3817, b. 1902

Father*

Eugene J. Blakely¹ b. 8 Mar 1873

Mother*

Carrie (?)¹ b. 1876

J. Kenneth Blakely|b. 1902|p24.htm#i3817|Eugene J. Blakely|b. 8 Mar 1873|p24.htm#i232|Carrie (?)|b. 1876|p4.htm#i3815|William J. Blakely|b. 26 Apr 1839\nd. 7 Jan 1877|p25.htm#i56|Mary Gensheimer|b. 1850\nd. c 1930|p62.htm#i200|||||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

2nd cousin 2 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

1902

J. Kenneth Blakely was born in 1902 at PA.¹

He was the son of Eugene J. Blakely and Carrie (?).¹

Last Edited

13 Aug 2003

Citations

[S61] 1920 Census;.

James Blakely¹

M, #3230, b. 1877

Father*

William James Blakely¹ b. 26 Apr 1839, d. 7 Jan 1877

Mother*

Mary Gensheimer¹ b. 1850, d. c 1930

James Blakely|b. 1877|p24.htm#i3230|William James Blakely|b. 26 Apr 1839\nd. 7 Jan 1877|p25.htm#i56|Mary Gensheimer|b. 1850\nd. c 1930|p62.htm#i200|James B. Blakely|b. 15 Jun 1804\nd. 19 Jun 1882|p24.htm#i50|Susananna Smyth|b. 15 Sep 1804\nd. 12 Nov 1885|p115.htm#i51|||||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY

Relationship

1st cousin 3 times removed of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

1st cousin 3 times removed of Page Annette Woodrough.

Birth*

1877

James Blakely was born in 1877 This son born after his father's death.¹

He was the son of William James Blakely and Mary Gensheimer.¹

Note*

circa 1930

Circa 1930 A note written by Paul Lendrum Blakely to his brother SLB tells of his mother's death and continues by saying she was "the mother of our cousins Josie, Sue and Gene Blakely, not to mention the unfortunate James." I have no clue what made James so unfortunate.

Last Edited

4 Sep 2009

Citations

[S56] 1880 Census;.

James B. Blakely^1,2,3

M, #50, b. 15 June 1804, d. 19 June 1882

JAMES BLAKELY

Advertisement for the Blakely Bankruptcy sale. He was a land speculator.

NOTICE OF SALE OF JAMES BLAKELY'S PROPERTY

Father*

(?) Blakely b. c 1785, d. b 1830

Mother*

Sarah or Alice (?) b. 1781, d. 8 Jul 1854

James B. Blakely|b. 15 Jun 1804\nd. 19 Jun 1882|p24.htm#i50|(?) Blakely|b. c 1785\nd. b 1830|p24.htm#i183|Sarah or Alice (?)|b. 1781\nd. 8 Jul 1854|p8.htm#i422|||||||(?) Houghton||p76.htm#i3825||||

Charts

SIMON RUFFNER
BLAKELY
WOODROUGH KIDLET ANCESTORS

Relationship

3rd great-grandfather of Stephens Blakely Woodrough Jr.

Relationship

3rd great-grandfather of Page Annette Woodrough.

Reference

A-26

Birth*

15 June 1804

On 15 June 1804 Obituary gives birthdate as June 13, 1804; Family stories give Blackburn, England, but so far no definitive proof. All signs seem to point this way though as 1850 census gives his birthplace as England.
Laura Woodrough found the following record: "Sarah Blakely died age 79 August 1854." This is in the range for James mother who we are told by Walter Blakely was buried in East Liverpool in the old cemetery the Blakelys gave to the town. She was subsequently removed to the newer cemetery about 1902 as described in Walter's letter regarding the bridge company's plans.
Sebastian Wimmer's diary says James Blakely was born in Lacashire England and gives birthdate of June 15, 1804. Sebastian was James Blakely's son-in-law.^4,5,3,2

James B. Blakely was the son of (?) Blakely and Sarah or Alice (?).

Baptism

24 December 1826

He was baptized on 24 December 1826 at Roman Catholic; St. Patrick/St. Paul, Pittsburgh, PA, "Jacobus Blakely, a convert from Calvanism."

MARRIAGE*

4 November 1827

He married Susananna Smyth, daughter of John Edward Smyth and Anna Margaret Ruffner, on 4 November 1827 at Pittsburgh, PA, From SLB's "Reminiscenses" My grandfather James Blakely, married Susan Smythe. Her mother was Barbara Ruffner, whose father was Simon Ruffner. The Ruffners came to western Virginia in the 17th century from Mainz, Germany. I have hanging in my home a picture which tradition says they brought with them. It represents the sorrowful mother and is very delicately pieced together of colored paper and gold. (Note: in 1999 Laura Glass acquired this when John R. Blakely died she willed it to give it to Stephens B. Woodrough, Jr) I have heard that Simon Ruffner and his brothers, Christian and George in the year 1797, gave to Father Carroll, afterwards first Bishop in the United States, the first piece of property owned by the Church, west of the Allegheny Mountains. I have made no search for documentary evidence of this. (Note from MVW - in fact there is a huge amount of evidence for this fact.)
The Ruffner family is still numerous and prominent in West Virginia. Colonel Ernest Ruffner of the U. S. Engineers, was stationed in Cincinnati at the time of his death. His daughter. Violet, married Lewis DeBus, now dead. She lives in Cincinnati (1956). I see her occasionally and we recognize our relationship.^6,2

Obituary*

19 June 1882

Obnituary of James B. Blakely was DEATH OF A DISTINGUISHED CATHOLIC
(From The Lake Shore Visitor – Erie Penna. 1882
Blakely—On Monday, June 19th 1882 at 11:15 A.M, at St. Mary’s Pa., James Blakely, age 78 years and four days
He whose name appears at the beginning of this notice deserves more than a mere mention. He had passed the years allotted to man by the Psalmist, and, with the exception of less than half a score, all his life had been spent in the strict and fervent observance of the true Faith. Before his 20th year the good seed had been sown in his mind, and the instrument by which the work of the Divine Husbandman was effected was by the reading of Catholic books. A native of Liverpool, England he came to Pittsburgh, PA., which city he made his home, and with whose leading interests, religious, social and political, he was for many years prominently identified. The great financial crash of 1857 stranded him, as it did thousands of others, and with his family he moved to St. Mary’s Elk county, Pa., where he resided until his death which was hastened by a fall received on the 11th of May. In St. Marys he filled various positions of trust, being Burgess, Postmaster, and county Superintendent of
public Schools. The first and last offices he filled several terms. He leaves an aged widow and several children. His eldest son, Dr. James Blakely, who died some years ago, was well known in Erie, and two others entered the service of religion, Mother Beatrice, O.S.B, who died last March, and Father Aloysius, C.S.P., Vice-Rector of the Passionist Retreat, Hoboken, N.J.
To the last moments Mr. Blakely was attended with zealous and untiring care by Rev. Father Celestine, O.S.B, Prior at St. Mary’s, and surrounded by his devoted wife and children, he peacefully passed away. His funeral took place on Thursday from St. Mary’s Church. Solemn Requiem Mass was chanted by his son, Rev. Father Aloysius assisted by Rev. Father Selection, Prior, as Deacon, and Rev. Father Edmund as Subdeacon.
His sufferings during his last illness were so intense, and his resignation to the Divine will so perfect, that it may be hoped he thus satisfied for any transgressions of his past life, yet let not his friends forget that the infinite justice of God can not bear the slightest stain, therefore let them, and let all who read this tribute, pray for the repose of his soul, that his time of probation may be shortened, and that “Eternal Rest” may soon be his portion in the realms of ‘Perpetual Light”

OBITUARY
Elk Co. Gazette 6-22-1882
Mr. James Blakely
On Monday June 19th 1882 at 11 o’clock A.M. at his residence in St. Mary’s, Pa, Mr. James Blakely.
Mr. Blakely was born in Liverpool, England June 13th, 1804, consequently was four days over the age of 78 years when he died. He emigrated to this country with his parents in 1817. Landing in Baltimore, his father moved to Pittsburgh with his family. Deceased lived in Pittsburgh over forty years and during that time was prominently identified with the leading interests of that city both religious and political, having filled an unusually large number of offices in that time. He was originally a member of the Episcopalian denominations, but embraced the Catholic faith about the 24th year of his age, of which he has since been a zealous and consistent member. He married Miss Susan Smyth, a member of one of the oldest Catholic families in this country about the year 1828. His wife is an American lady, there being eight generations of her family lying in American ground before her. Mr. Blakely moved to St. Mary’s in 1862, he coming here some months before his family joined him. In St. Mary’s he was twice elected chief burgess, and served two terms as County Superintendent, and was for several years Postmaster of this borough. He was an active business man, his store for years being the headquarters for books, stationery and religious articles. He enjoyed excellent health until about three years ago, since when he had been gradually failing. He had the misfortune to fall and fracture the thigh bone of his right leg several weeks ago, which served to hasten his death. Mr. Blakely was a remarkable man, and is the father of a remarkable family, Probably the most noted for refinement and intelligence of any in this section of the country.
He was a man of excellent social qualities, and had hosts of friends who will read this notice of his death with sorrow. The funeral will take place from the St. Mary’s Catholic church this Thursday morning at 9 o’clock. Deceased leaves an aged widow and several sons and daughters, with a large number of grandchildren to mourn for him. Peace to his soul. MVW note - I suspect this was written by Sebastian Wimmer his son in law. on 19 June 1882 at St. Mary's, Elk County, PA.⁵

Death

19 June 1882

He died on 19 June 1882 at St. Mary's, PA, at age 78 This date given by Sebastian Wimmer, his son-in-law with whom James lived. Sebastian kept meticulous records encompassed in 65 annual diaries..³

Burial*

22 June 1882

He was buried on 22 June 1882 at St. Mary's; Wimmer Plot, St. Mary's, Elk County, PA, Wimmer Lot has three names, but the space between Susan X. Blakely and Lavinia and Earnest Wimmer is presumed to be Sebastian Wimmer grave.
James and Susanna Blakely were buried in the Blakely lot along with Josephine Luhr.
Here is Laura Steneck's guess on the history of the cemetery lot.
The lot was sold to Luhr Family. James, Susan and Josephine are lost to the ages.
And since I have nothing better to do today...at least for the moment....
I have solved PART of the mystery of who's buried on the "Blakely" plot.....
The Joseph listed on the 1998 letter was Joseph J. Luhr, SON OF CHARLES & ELIZABETH LUHR......
The Frank listed is really FRANCES LUHR, wife of Joseph J. Probably called Frank during her lifetime...as was Frances Mary Blakely...called Aunt Frank.
The Augustine listed is the son of Joseph J. & Frances Luhr
The Jorden and Pierre listed are children of Augustine and Frances.
There are just 9 graves on the Blakely plot, as it was acknowledged IN 1938 that "his aunt, Josephine Luhr, was buried on the lot" when the deed "was given to Joseph Luhr on May 11th".....Now.....given by whom????
Still haven't identified Edmund, Aurelia and Donald Luhr.....

Here is Laura's description of where the lots are located:
The Wimmer plot was exactly where Mary Miller said it was and was the first plot we found. There is a obolisk on the plot, so wasn't hard to find. The problem was finding the LUHR lot that contained the remains of our Blakely ancestors, James & Susanna. I found 1 plot, situated near a large oak tree and Ron found a plot situated at the top of the hill near the fence line both with Luhr graves. So which one was the Blakely plot originally? The one at the top of the hill!!! I determined this by the dates of the LUHR burials - as they had to be after 1925 when the plot was sold to the Luhrs.

WIMMER PLOT

Blakely Luhr Lot. This is the lot where Susan and James Blakely were buried, but there are no markers.

COUNTY CHANGE*

He was living when the county name changed.

Biography

The land struggle
James B. and Susanna [Smyth] Blakely were a remarkable couple with an equally remarkable family of eight accomplished children. But the story of James and his family would not be complete if we did not touch on what is called the "land struggle," that persisted for three generations!

James Blakely filed bankruptcy in 1857, a result of the great panic of that year. He voluntarily assigned all of his holdings to John J. Mitchell (eldest son of his brother in law), who acted as trustee. But, for some unknown reason J. J. Mitchell resigned and the District Court appointed William Campbell to take over as trustee, and therein-lay part of the problem. James was a resident of Pittsburgh at the time and the papers of assignment were filed in the court there, but most of his lands and city lots were in several different states and territories; therein lays the rest of the problem!

The land dispute seems to have begun in 1885, three years after James Blakely died and 28 years after his bankruptcy, when Mr. William Stahl purchased 160 acres of land in Minnesota that had belonged originally to James Blakely, sold in 1861 by William Campbell, trustee, to a man named William Badger who held the land until his death in the late 1880's when it was sold to William G. Stahl. While Stahl's attorney was examining the title, he questioned the validity of Campbell's appointment by the court, therefore filed a suit against the original trustee, J. J. Mitchell, and all of the Blakely heirs, seeking to get a "quiet title" to the property. It's likely he wanted a quitclaim deed from the Blakelys in order to perfect the chain of ownership. Essentially, the suit questioned the jurisdiction of Pennsylvania courts over lands in other states.

The case went to trial and ended with a verdict in favor of the plaintiff, Stahl, but the Blakely defendants appealed for a new trial. At the second trial, the Blakely defendants won. The family had visions of recovering some of the large tracts of land their father had once owned, now worth considerably more than when it was sold to pay his creditors years before. Laurie Blakely, son of James and a practicing attorney at the time, traveled to Minnesota and located all of the property. In a summary letter to the other family members he announced that they would recover "millions"! Stahl, in the meantime, appealed the decision to the Supreme Court of Minnesota where, in 1889, Stahl was again victorious. So the vision of millions evaporated into thin air and the story ended? No.

In January 1894, five years after the Stahl decision by the Supreme Court of Minnesota, the Blakely heirs, with Lavinia [Blakely] Wimmer as their "leader" (likely because her son was the District Attorney), again tried their hand at recovering some compensation for the valuable lands given up by their father, James Blakely. This time the Blakely heirs hired an attorney in East Liverpool, Ohio, and had him send notices to every individual owning city lots and lands once owned by James Blakely, questioning the validity of Campbell's (the second trustee) appointment. The lots in question covered a large area of the business center, and the inference of a lawsuit so long after the fact caused quite a stir in the town of East Liverpool. Huge articles appeared on the front pages of their local newspapers and the town talked of nothing else for several months. Finally, towards the fall of that year, 1894, this, too, came to an end - NOT favorable to the Blakely heirs. Sebastian Wimmer sent a copy of a letter received by his son Ernest, attorney at law, to his sister-in-law, Mary Louise Ryan. The letter was from the attorney they had hired in East Liverpool and it said in part - "the case is at an end."

And, so ends another vision of recovering millions. Well, if not millions, at least a nice piece of change! End of story? Well......... no, not quite.

The Blakely heirs give up on the vast lands and city lots once owned by James, but in 1902 or so, a bridge company came to East Liverpool and wanted to construct another bridge across the Ohio river between East Liverpool and Newall, West Virginia. In order to do this, it would be necessary to use part of the old town cemetery and some graves would have to be moved. Wait a minute! The cemetery land was given by the Blakelys to the town of East Liverpool and was to be a cemetery forever. The bridge company wished to pay the Blakely heirs a small amount for the land they needed; (the cemetery was no longer accepting new burials). Once again the Blakely heirs saw an opportunity for compensation for their father’s loss. They noted that when the land was given it had a stipulation (no documentation of this has been found) that it would revert to the heirs if "ever used for anything other than a cemetery." The cemetery was already closed and most of the graves moved, but only when the bridge company became interested did the Blakely heirs see their chance. They decided that the town would have to return this valuable tract to the Blakely heirs. (In fact the land was on the outskirts of town, was a steep and eroding hill with little value to anyone except the bridge company that needed a place to anchor.) The Blakelys refused the offer from the bridge company, which eventually negotiated with the town for the parcel they wanted and once again the Blakely heirs were disappointed. The bridge was constructed, and now even a highway has eaten away most of the two acres of ground that once held the mortal remains of the long-dead ancestors of many. What little is left today is not much more than a green area, which the locals call Skeleton Park, because of the few graves still there. The Blakely heirs never received a dime.

Out of curiosity, Stephens Blakely Woodrough, a fourth generation Blakely heir, and his wife, Margot, traveled to East Liverpool, Ohio in 1998. Together with their daughter Page and son-in-law Mark McDermott, they walked the bridge and visited Skeleton Park, the cemetery land donated so long ago to the early town of East Liverpool. They walked around downtown, taking pictures and asking questions. Perhaps it was best that the activities of the prior generations of Blakely heirs were forgotten. Otherwise, it is questionable if this generation of Blakelys would have been so graciously received when they breezed into town that cool, fall day.

Yes, they lost everything in the crash of 1857, as did many people. And yes, the Blakely heirs did stir things up a bit forty years later. But for all the good that was done by James and John Simpson Blakely they should always be remembered. Moreover, the bankruptcy and all the attempts at land reclamation attempted over the years produced records that caused the life of James and Susan Blakely to become accessible to the present family. Recently, their bankruptcy papers along with a full inventory of their immense land holdings; home and office were found stashed in the attic at Beechwood. The family papers and memorabilia now rest in quiet peace in the Ohio Historical Association in Columbus, Ohio. The curator, Bill Gates, was absolutely thrilled to receive this tiny fragment of early history. As family, we are delighted that more than a hundred years later this Blakely family is finding a proper place in the early fabric of East Liverpool, Ohio as well as Pittsburgh and St. Marys, Pennsylvania.

This picture was taken in 1998. The Blakely land is on a bluff overlooking the Ohio River. The Newall Bridge connects Ohio and West Virginia. The construction of the bridge in the early 20^th century raised the Blakely family hopes of recovering either money or property.

Note

1800

In 1800 BLACKBURN, (N. lat. 53º.43" W. lon. 2º.24".) a flourishing market town and extensive parish, (one of the two which comprize nearly the whole hundred) in the deanry of Blackburn. It is situated 8 miles N.W. of Haslingden, 11 miles E. of Preston, 25 miles N.N.W. of Manchester, and 210 miles from London. The living is a Vicarage; Patron the Archbishop of Canterbury. Beside the old, or parish church, the town contains two others, viz. St. Paul's, and St. John's, as well as Chapels belonging to Dissenters of various denominations. Amongst the charitable institutions is a Free-school, founded by Queen Elizabeth. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal passes near the town. Blackburn has been long famous for its Cotton goods, formerly known by the name of Blackburn Greys, which have been superceded by Calicoes, of which a great number of pieces are annually manufactured here. In the southern parts of the parish, coal is got in abundance; and in one of the hills, is also a mine of allum, which has not been worked for some time, on account of the expence of removing the superincumbent strata. Market day, Wednesday. Fairs, Easter Monday - and May 11, for cattle, horses, toys, &c. September 29 for toys and smallwares. In 1801, Blackburn contained 2352 houses, and 11,980 inhabitants.

A book found at the LDS library, "Bits of Old Blackburn" gives the following information about the name of Blakely: "Blakey Moor is the modern name of a plot of land in the Centre of Blackburn. The old and correct name was "Blakeley Moor," the proper derivation of which is probably "Blake" and "ley" with "ley" meaning a pasture land for cattle, and "Blake" (as in the name Blakewater and Blackburn), meaning yellow - the yellow lea, or Blakeley. Moor is a common term for waste land. The property in Barton Street, Bond Street and part of Nab lane is built upon what was Blakey Moor. Fish Lane (now Cardwell Place) at one time led directly onto the Moor. As the old historic fair ground of Blackburn, and as the cattle market for 55 years, the Moor has a history of great interest to the people of the town. The moor is mentioned in a royal decree dated the 11th of July, 1618, and made by King James I on the petition of the property owners of Blackburn. (for full text see MVW file).

Emigration*

September 1819

He emigrated in September 1819 from Liverpool, England, Baltimore, MD.⁷

Immigration*

September 1819

In September 1819 at Baltimore, MD, Entry states that on May 8, 1829 James Blakely who had lived in or near Pittsburgh since 1819 filed intention of naturalization. Record states that he arrived in U.S Sept 1819 at Baltimore having emmigrated from Liverpool. His age in 1829 was given as 24. His sponsor was Copernicus Walters of Pittsburgh. The same record shows William Blakely and states that James Blakely of Pittsburgh was sponsor in 1830.
(Family stories give original place of Immigration as Washington Co., PA. Need to research this more.)
Note that another source (his son-in-law Sebastian Wimmer in his diary) says he came in 1817.
Blackburn England is an ancient place. Its name derives from the stream known as "Blakewater" Its old main road from south to north was the Roman road that linked Manchester with Ribchester. Its position on this road in Saxon and Viking times made it the chief town of North East Lancashire, which was known then as the Blackburn Hundred. The town saw momentous changes as a result of the Industrial Revolution.^4,7,8,3

Biography*

1821

A Pittsburg history states: "James Blakely came from England in 1821, settling near Pittsburgh. He came from Anglo-Danish stock. They were land owners in Lancashire, and while not Catholics, were still loyal to the Stuarts; they lost much property and life in the wars of those times. James became a Catholic through much reading and conviction at the age of seventeen years, and brought his children up in that faith and to be loyal to their own country. He was a devoted friend of Bishop O'Connor, of sainted memory. Together they started the "Brotherhood of St. Joseph," of which Mr. Blakely was the first president and continued until his removal to St. Mary's, where he died."
Stories of the family (as well as newly acquired documents - 1998) say that he was bankrupted by the panic of 1857 and left Pittsburgh for St. Mary's, Pa. in Benzinger Township of Elk Co. The census records for 1860 and 1870 support this story.
In 1931 his grandson, Paul Lendrum Blakely wrote the following:
"He settled in Pittsburgh in the later thirties or early forties. He engaged in real estate and private banking, and soon acquired what for those days was a large fortune. It is interesting to know that although "a typical Englishman" he differed from the class in one important particular -- that was his devotion to England all but turned to hatred as often as he thought of the wrongs of Ireland! And it is consoling, for his grandhildren he was noted for, his interest in every phase of Catholic activity in the then little town of Pittsburgh."
His grandaughter, Susan H. Blakely, commented in 1978 that she recalled seeing newspaper headlines saying, "Blakely Loses Millions". This headline must have been in a family album as it would have happened at least thirty years before Susan was born. She also told stories of land that was given for a park that would revert to the family if it was not used for such. She said that her father, Laurie Blakely, was absent from home a great deal of time trying to reclaim the property. It is likely that there is truth to this story as there is a deed in East Liverpool from James and wife Susannah of Pittsburgh giving land for a cemetery in 1850. The deed is recorded in Columbiana Co., Ohio Deed Book #45 on P.97. It states that James and wife Susannah of City of Pittsburgh gave land to the town of Liverpool providing that proceeds of all lots sold to be expended on management and improving same and that the land was to be used as a cemetery for all religious beliefs and that the poor should be buried free. Possibly this is the land that was not used as it should have been, became valuable and is the source of the story.
In 1998 SBW, MVW and Page and Mark Mc Dermott visited East Liverpool. The old cemetery (now known as "Skeleton Park" is there as is the bridge that caused all the uproar from the descendants. Sifting through the myth and family tales it appears that the headline "Blakely Loses Millions" was associated with the bankruptcy James Blakely faced in the financial panic of the late 1850's. No doubt his child Laurie Blakely grew up hearing this story and when he was older went back to East Liverpool when the bridge was being built to see what money could be recovered. Laurie's son, Stephens L. Blakely, was a new attorney at the time and together father and son tried to get payment for the taking of the cemetary land. Nothing came of it. Essentially two family stories merged into one.
in 1821 at Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA.

Religion

circa 1830

He was He was said to have been a member of the Oxford or Tractarian Movement. Here is a description:
The Oxford Movement may be looked upon in two distinct lights. "The
conception which lay at its base," according to the Royal Commission on
Ecclesiastical Discipline, 1906, "was that of the Holy Catholic Church as a
visible body upon earth, bound together by a spiritual but absolute unity,
though divided into national and other sections. This conception drew with
it the sense of ecclesiastical continuity, of the intimate and unbroken
connection between the primitive Church and the Church of England, and of
the importance of the Fathers as guides and teachers. It also tended to
emphasize points of communion between those different branches of the
Church, which recognize the doctrine or fact of Apostolic Succession"
(Report, p. 54). That is the point of view maintained in the "Tracts for
the Times" from 1833 to 1841, which gave its familiar name to the
"Tractarian" Movement. They originated and ended with John Henry Newman.

Residence

1837

He lived in 1837 at Pittsburgh, PA; In 1837 James Blakely is living in the "Northern Liberties" section......according to the Harris Business Directory.(now the 5th Ward the directory goes on....).

Anecdote

1837

In 1837 at Description of East Liverpool The town where James and John Blakely set up their pottery business,East Liverpool Ohio, is a flourishing town exactly half way between Pittsburg and Wheeling. In 1837 it has a steamboat yard, steam grist and saw mill and several other works either in building or contemplation. Merchants, manufacturers, and mechanics, have now, and always will meet with, liberal encouragement. The situation is remarkably healthy, always having the advantages of pure air and good water. It is the terminating point of the Ashtabula, Warren and Liverpool Rail Road, part of which is under contract, and the work progressing. From present appearances, this place bids fair to become one of the principal ports on the Ohio River.

Employment*

1838

In 1838 at Realtor/Banker/Pottery Broker; Woodward, Blakely & Co., Pittsburgh, PA, Woodward and Blakely pottery started in late 1840's and lasted until failure in 1857.
"Pittsburg as it Was" by George Thurston 1857 states: There are in the city three firms who transact a real estate business. Among them are Blakely and Richey at the corner of Smithfield and 7th streets.
Another source gives Blakely office as being on Pennsylvania between Walnut and Factory.

http://digital.library.pitt.edu/cache//3/1/7/31735038289074/0134.jp2.s.jpg.⁷

JAMES BLAKELY ADVERTISEMENT

BLAKELY POTTERY

CENSUS1840*

1840

He appeared on the census in 1840 at Pittsburgh, PA; James Blakely, living in 5th Ward, Allegheny Co., Pa. has 1 female, age given as 70-80! Actually, mama was ONLY 61 - but maybe they thought she was a bit older.....OR could be a scribbinger error and they put the one in the wrong column......either way.....THAT'S OUR SARAH!!!!!⁹

LANDCONTRA*

1841

In 1841 at Section 24 of E. Liverpool, East Liverpool, Columbiana County, OH, In spite of the fact that James and Susan owned and transferred a great deal of land, I do not believe they lived in East Liverpool. I think rather that James was an agent for his brother operating from Pittsburg.
A number of land transactions involved the following people in addition to Susannah and James Blakely: Laurence and Mary Mitchell (Susannah's sister) William G and Susan Smith (possibley Susannah's brother) and Rick and Mary Ann Marsley.

DEED*

1850

In 1850 at Conveyance, East Liverpool, Columbiana County, OH, Deed Book 45 p. 97 describes the gift of land for $2.00 from James and wife Susannah of Pittsburg to the town. It is two acres near the intersection of the east side of West St. and the north side of 4th street. The land is conveyed "provided that the proceeds of all lots sold to be expended in management and improving same as the said council and their successors may deem to be the most expedient and the said lot shall only to be used as a cemetery and to be kept sacred for that purpose forever and provided that no corpse shall be refused interrment on account of their religious belief and the poor shall be interred free." (Note that the deed gives a full meets and bounds description of the land.)
Witnesses for the conveyance were two daughters - Mary Louisa and Susanna M. Blakely.

NEWALL BRIDGE
EAST LIVERPOOL OHIO

Anecdote*

29 February 1852

On 29 February 1852 at President of St. Vincent DePaul, Pittsburgh, PA, The History of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in the Diocese of Pittsburg began with the first regular meeting, held Feb. 29, 1852, in the Literary Hall, old St. Paul's Cathedral, then located at Fifth Ave. and Grant St. in Pittsburg. This was seven years after the Society began in the United States at St. Louis, MO in 1845; or nearly nineteen years following its original formation in Paris, France in 1833. James Blakely was the first president of the society. Vice president was Dr. W. Draine and Jacob Porter, Secretary was John Mitchell (James Blakely's nephew and also trustee in Bankruptcy) and Treasurer was F. A. Frethy.
The following are the minutes of the first meeting:
"The Society of St. Vincent De Paul"
An adjourned meeting of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul was held in the Hall of the "Catholic Literary and Defense Association" on Sunday, February 29 1852 at 2 PM James Blakely, Esq in the chair and John J. Mitchel, Secretary. The Right Rev. Bishop Michael O'Connor was present and delivered a brief, but forcible (sic) address in which he clearly explained and approved of the objects of the Society. Rules and Regulations were adopted and officers elected.

Residence*

1853

He lived in 1853 at Lawrenceville, Pittsburgh, PA; 1860 census says he lived in 6th ward. Lawrenceville's boundaries given as from "forks of the road to Pennsylvania Ave and from the Allegheny to 50th St.¹⁰

Residence

1857

He lived in 1857 at Pittsburgh, PA; The Blakelys lived at a place called "Hillside House." Sebastian Wimmer mentions going there many times in his 1857 diary. Evidently it was in the location of Lawrenceville which is a suburb of Pittsburgh. The home must have been within walking distance of the train station as that is how he commuted from downtown almost daily. In January 2000 MVW wrote to the Lawrenceville Historical Society in an effort to pinpoint the location. They said that the location that comes closest to the former intersection of Mulberry and O'Hara Street and that O'Hara is now known as 12th Street. Houses with even numbered addresses were likely on the left side of the street as you face the Allegheny. The librarian suspects that the area might be known as "The Strip" district. An entry for 1856 says home was on the Collins Turnpike, but this was likely a second home.

Note*

1857

He James and wife Susanna owned and sold much land in Columbiana Co, East Liverpool. The level of activity supports what might be expected of a real estate investor.
They were bankrupted in the late 1850's from a financial panic and speculation. Their bankruptcy papers give a detailed account of their holdings both personal and business. in 1857 at Pittsburgh, PA.

BANKRUPTCY*

1857

He declared bankruptcy in 1857 at Pittsburgh, PA, In 1998 the Bankruptcy papers including an extensive inventory were found in the attic of Beechwood. Apparently Laurie J. Blakely ordered copies after his father's death in connection with an attempt to collect money for land given to Town of East Liverpool for use as a Cemetery which was subsequently used for bridge right of way and a hospital parking lot. In 1998 Margot and Steve Woodrough visited East Liverpool, located the land and determined that the whole project to recapture some of the family fortune had been an exercise in futility from the start but the whole process resulted in the preservation of very interesting records.^2,4

Residence

1859

He lived in 1859 at 103 Elm, Pittsburgh, PA; This information according to the Pittsburgh City Directory.

http://www2.county.allegheny.pa.us/RealEstate/Search_Results.asp?CheckDa
ta=true.

CENSUS1860*

1 June 1860

He appeared on the census on 1 June 1860 at Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, PA; James is shown with personal property of $600. His daughter Susanna listed as a music teacher and his son Laurie as a clerk at age 17. The city directory gives the street address of 103 Elm. Elm Street is called Edmond in 2003. Evidently the family moved shortly after the census as a book about early St. Marys says that she moved there in 1860.¹¹

ELECTION*

1862

He was elected in 1862 at Burgess; St. Marys, St. Mary's, Elk County, PA.

CENSUS1870*

1 June 1870

He appeared on the census on 1 June 1870 at St. Mary's, Elk County, PA; There are two grown children i.e. Laurie listed as a lawyer with personal property of $400. and Susana with personal property of $4,000 living at home. They are probably there to look after aging parents.¹²

Residence

1880

He lived in 1880 at St. Mary's, PA; I found James living next door to Dr. Eban J. Russ at #5 Center St. in 1880 census! Must be close to where the Towne House Inn stands today! The Luhr family lived two doors away.¹³

CENSUS1880*

1 June 1880

He appeared on the Census on 1 June 1880 at St. Mary's, Elk County, PA; Occupation shown as merchant.¹⁴

Name Variation

1885

Found this initial in Wimmer Diary dated September 15, 1885.³

NEWSPAPER*

9 January 1897

He was mentioned in a newspaper (Newspaper Article from The East Liverpool Tribune, January 9, 1897)
     The Blakely Suit--A great many persons owning property between Fourth street and Starkey's Lane were startled to receive the following notice through the mail the fore part of this week:
     Dear Sir:--We have been instructed by the heirs of James Blakely, deceased, to notify you that said heirs claim the title of your property to be in them, that is that portion in Blakely's additon to this city.
     The history of the same is entirely to long to give in the notification, but in brief, owing to the assignee's illegal acts, by virtue of whose deed you claim title, you have never been the legal possessor of the same.
     I want to give you ample time to have your attorney look into this matter befoe taking further steps to litigate the same.
     A great part of this section of East Liverpool was sold by the assignee of James Blakely, who became financially involved during the great panic of 1857.
     This is part of the estate of Claiborne Simms, who in 1824 bought the farm of Fawcett and Pemberton, and all the unsold lots of their additon to East Liverpool. The terriroty bought by Claiborne Simms extended from West Side Market street to Jethro, North to the Croft farm, and the south line of the Geddes farm, reaching east to a line parallel with the east side of Lincoln avenue and back to west side of Market street. When Claiborne Simms died, about 1833, the late Alex. Young was appointed administrator of his estate, and he sold all the potion north of Fourth street to James Blakely. Previous, and during his lifetime, Claiborne Simms made an addition to "Liverpool," commencing at the alley west of Jackson, and extending west to Mill street, and north to west side of Fourth street. James Blakely laid out an addition from the north side of Fourth street to Sixth street, and Seventh street. Some of the lots in his first addition he sold, and to all such lots there is no dispute as to title.
     When Blakely became financially embarrassed he made an assignment of all these lots to one Mitchell. Later a second assignee was appointed, who was James Campbell. Now comes the heirs of James Blakely, over forty years after, and claim fraud and irregularities on the part of one or both of these assignees, and seek to wrest from innocent persons property they have bought and paid for, and built homes thereon, which in many instances have been liebel without dispute for nearly half a century. A great sensation was the result of this threatened suit, but no person need feel alarmed. Of course they may have to spend a few dollars to defend the title to their home; but if there was fraud, the assignees and their bondsmen can and should be held accountable. The whole thing has a suspicious aspect of attempted "hold-up," or wild west robbery methods. We are told that "compromise" has already been made on similar suits over western lands. We are told this is not a game of "bluff," and on the same day notices are mailed to persons, who are politely invited to come to the Blakely attorneys and talk compromise. If the assigness of James Blakely defrauded his heirs, why are they so many years finding it out? Why did not James Blakely himslef know something about the fraud? He died satisfied, so far as any one knows, that his assignees were faithful and true to the interests of his creditors and himself as well. If not, why did not the creditors, who were as much interested as Mr. Blakely, at once pursue and arrest these "bad assignees," who were guilty of such gross fraud and irregularities as are charged? Our advice to the people whose property is affected, is to entertain no offers of compromise. Pay nothing until you have to. Combine together and makea test case and fight for your rights as property owners who have paid for your homes and defrauded no one. The courts ought to and will protect you.

Newspaper article from the Daily Times) AFTER OHIO PROPERTY     A Pittsburg Woman Claims Fraud in Distributing Valuable Property.
     Pittsburg, January 7 - Through the alleged dishonesty of the assignee of James Blakely, in Pittsburg, in 1857, the title of property in East Liverpool, valued at several million dollars, is questioned. The heirs have put their claims in the hands of attorneys, and notices have been served on the owners of over 150 lots in the business center of that city that their titles will be questioned in court.
     Blakely was a wealthy Pittsburger, and owned extensive property interest in East Liverpool. He assigned, and it is now alleged that the title of the property was never transferred, and that the disposition of the property was a direct steal. The property in dispute includes some of the largest business properties in East Liverpool, including five churches.
     There are six direct heirs of James Blakely living. They are Laura J. Blakely, Mary L. Ryan, Susan X Blakely, Rev Aloysius Blakely, the widow of Dr. James Blakely, and her four children, and Lavina Harvey Wimmer. The one who is pushing the present case is Mrs. Wimmer, who lives near Pittsburg. She has employed counsel, and started an investigation. East Liverpool is all excited over the matter.
     (Mr. James A. Blakely, of this city, is one of the heirs directly interested in the case - Ed. Times)

(Newspaper article)          PROPERTY WORTH MILLIONS.
Heirs File Claims for 150 Lots in the Business Center of East Liverpool.
     EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio January 4 - Through the alleged dishonesty of the assignee of James Blakely, in Pittsburg, in 1857, the title of property in East Liverpool, valued at several millions, is questioned. The heirs have put their claims in the hands of attorneys, and notices have been served on the owners of over 150 lots in the business center of the city that their titles will be questioned in court. Blakely was a wealthy Pittsburger, and owned extensive property interests here. He assigned, and it is now alleged that the title of the property was never transferred.
MVW note: Laurie and examined all of the correspondence associated with this case and decided that Laurie Blakely and Effie Ryan were the original people interested in recovering some of James' lost fortune. They didn't succeed, but when Stephens L. Blakely , as a young lawyer, was looking for a case he reopened the issue. Nothing came of it. All of the paperwork associated with the case was found in Beechwood's attic about 1999. Many of the papers were deposited with the ohio Historical association. Other person papers remain in MVW file. on 9 January 1897.

RECORDS*

2003

In 2003 at Columbus, Ohio, All original records from James Blakely and John simpson Blakely including pictures were donated to the Ohio Hisotrical Society where they will be preserved. Copies of most papers are still in MVW file.

Note

10 June 2008

He In a determined effort to find James' family in England I hired a researcher. A rather diligent seearch turned up nothing. The Blakelys had a oral tradition of having come from Blackburn lancashire England. Apparently this was a myth. See below.
Hello Margaret
I am pleased to inform you that I have received the following report from ourLancashire researcher.
Research request:
To establish the names of John Blakely’s parents.

Lancashire Record Office-15^th May 2008

I began the search for John Simpson Blakely’s baptism in the Non-Conformist registers of Blackburn and Darwen. The following N/C registers were searched:
Blackburn Islington Particular Baptists (Ref:Mf1/65 RG4/1200) 1800-1819
Darwen New Dissenters (Ref: Mf1/65 RG4/1017) 1805-1819
Old House Chapel, Darwen (Ref: Mf1/65 RG4/1201) 1795-1820
Blackburn Chapel St. Independent (Ref: Mf1/66 RG4/1018) 1809-1821
Over Darwen, Lower Chapel Congregationalists (Ref: Mf1/66 Rg4/882) 1800-1815
Blackburn Clayton St. Wesleyan (Ref: Mf1/66 RG4/2002)
Over Darwen Wesleyan Methodists (Ref:Mf1/82 Rg4/1057)
Methodist Register Book for Over Darwen 1802-1820
Over Darwen New Dissenters (Ref: RG4/107)1800-1820

There were no Blakely entries in any of the above registers.

The following RC registers were searched:
St. Alban’s, Blackburn (Ref: Mf1/66a) 1806-1815

This register listed several Ashton and Simpson entries and several children of Michael and Margaret Houghton, but there were no Blakely entries.

I also searched the RC registers of Samlesbury (CRS 23) and Fernyhalgh (CRS 130). Again, no Blakely entries.

The following Blackburn C of E registers were searched:
St. Paul’s (Ref: PR3340) 1806-1815
This register contained entries relating to Joseph and Catherine Blakey and Richard and Jane Houghton, but no John or James Blakely.

St. John the Evangelist (Ref: PR 3001/1/4) 1808-1817
St. James’, Darwen 1810-1815 (Ref: PR 2878/1/1-6)
No relevant entries.

St. Mary the Virgin, Blackburn (Ref:DRB2/9)
The original register for St. Mary’s is extremely difficult to read, with minute writing and soiled pages, so I abandoned this and had a look at the BTs , which were much more legible.

There were one or two entries which I thought worth noting, but they weren’t a direct match. It’s possible the surname spelling may have been miss-transcribed.

Pge 26 No2
John Brakely son of Henry and Mary Brakely of Rishton,Blackburn born 30^th May 1793 bapt. 28^th May 1793
Pge 138 No 27
Mary Ann Blakely dau. of Henry and Mary Blakely of Rishton bapt. 17^th Aug 1800
James son of Henry and Alice Brakely of Blackburn bapt. 6^th Sept. 1812
Mary dau. of Henry and Alice Brakely? of Blackburn Weaver Bapt. 24^th April 1814

I searched the marriage register of St. Mary’s for a marriage of Henry Blakely/Brakely and Mary or Alice but it was not listed.

The Baptism register for St. Peter’s Chapel Salesbury and Tockholes Chapel were also searched for the year 1812, but there were no Blakely entries.

I searched the Boyd’s Marriage Index of Lancashire for any marriage involving the names Blakely/Haughton between 1790-1813. There were no matches.

It would appear from the parish registers that Blakely was not a common name in the Blackburn area. There was quite a concentration of Blakely names in Liverpool, Manchester and Bolton in the early 1800s. It was disappointing not to find anything helpful, but all the available Blackburn and Darwen registers were searched in the required time.

This was the message researcher sent to me:
I have attached report and invoice for Job NO WW690. This was disappointing. Is client definite that John Blakely was born in Blackburn? Do they have any immigration or naturalisation documents, which should state their place of birth? I thought it surprising that out of the 17 Blackburn and Darwen registers searched, there was only one actual Blakely entry.
An e-mail invoice will be issued to you by our accounts department.
Regards,
Wendy on 10 June 2008.

Family

Susananna Smyth b. 15 September 1804, d. 12 November 1885

MARRIAGE*

4 November 1827

Children

William Blakely b. 23 Aug 1828, d. 23 Aug 1828
Sarah Ann Blakely b. 17 Sep 1829, d. 14 Mar 1882
Lavinia Harvey Blakely+ b. 5 Aug 1831, d. 4 May 1904
Mary Louise Blakely+ b. 12 Dec 1832, d. 21 Feb 1908
Susanna M. Blakely b. 23 Feb 1837, d. 17 May 1901
William James Blakely+ b. 26 Apr 1839, d. 7 Jan 1877
Laurie John Blakely+ b. 4 Mar 1843, d. 21 Jan 1917
Alice Theresa Blakely b. 29 May 1845, d. s 1850
Joseph Mariam Blakely b. 19 May 1847, d. 31 Oct 1912
Virginia Rose Blakely b. 3 Mar 1852, d. 6 Dec 1856

Last Edited

25 May 2011

Citations

He is called James "B" Blakely in his son-in-law's (Sebastian Wimmer) diary entry of November 6, 1876.
[S34] John W. Jordan Pittsburg and Her People.
[S463] "Sebastian Wimmer Diary."
[S8] Family information.
[S32] "SLB Remembrances."
[S52] 1850 Census;.
[S13] Allegheny County Immigrants.
[S457] Charles J. Schaut, Early St. Marys.
[S51] 1840 Census;.
[S54] 1860 Census;, At the time his worth was only $600. but there were still two servants living with the family.
[S54] 1860 Census;, LDS # 805,059 6th Ward Allegheny Co., Pittsburgh.
[S55] 1870 Census;, Occupation for James shown as "Fire Insurance Agent."
[S56] 1880 Census;.
[S56] 1880 Census;, T9-1125 p. 429A.