Surname Saturday ~ Martin

Have You Seen This Surname?
At times, it seems as if my Martin's came from, well, nowhere.  Everyone, I'm sure, who researches their family lines feels like this from time to time.  Ah, but no one comes from nowhere ~ so we must press on ~ diligently looking for our family, turning over every rock.

Wanted!
So, here's my "wanted" poster for my Martin family line.  Yes, I am aware that this is an extremely common name, but it doesn't hurt to try, right?  Here's what I do know:

• Nelson Martin [my 3rd great grandfather] was born abt. 1820 in North Carolina.  [No pesky details to clutter up this story.  No sireee.]
• Nelson Martin moved to Wayne Co, TN sometime bet. 1820 and 1841.  [Alas, no travel log left behind.  I guess they thought no one would care when they moved or who they moved with  They thought wrong...]
• Nelson Martin married Mary Ann "Polly" Casteel in Wayne Co, TN in 1841. [I'm so glad he didn't marry someone with a common name.  I mean, why make it harder? ;) ]
• Nelson & Mary [Casteel] Martin ~ their first 4 children were born in Wayne Co., TN: Joel Harrison b.1842 [my 2nd great-grandfather]; William Green b.1844; Genoria Ann b.1846; and Andrew Taylor b.1847.
• Nelson, Mary, and their 4 children moved to Johnson Co, IL sometime bet. 1847 and 1850.  [Could you imagine?  Almost 400 miles with the little kiddos?  I wonder if they heard the phrase, "Are we there yet?" a few times.]
• The Martin's are said to have known and traveled with at least 2 other families: the Kerley's and the West's.
• The Kerley Family: Daniel and Mary "Polly" [?] Kerley and their son Osburne Kerley.  [Well, I'm glad that my Mary "Polly" had another Mary "Polly" with whom to discuss the importance of...being a Mary "Polly"?]
• The West Family: Woodson and Martha [Casteel] West.  [This Martha Casteel is thought to be a sister of Mary...Perfect, Mary and Martha, get it?]
• Not only is it said that these 3 families knew & traveled with each other, but it's been said that Daniel & Mary "Polly" Kerley raised both Nelson and Woodson as their own along with their son Osburne.  [Why?  Why?  Oh, why?]
• In the 1850 census Nelson Martin and his family are living with Daniel Kerley and his family in Johnson Co., IL.  ["Polly?"  "Yes," they replied in unison.]
• In the 1850 census in Johnson Co, IL, Woodson West and his family are living nearby the Kerley's and the Martin's, and Osburne Kerley and his family are living nearby his parents, the Martin's and the West's. [Snug as a bug in a rug.]
• In May 1851, Nelson's and Mary "Polly's" fifth child is born: Martha Jane.
• In July 1851, Nelson buys his first 40 acres of land in Johnson Co., IL ~ near all the "fam."
• In May of 1852, Nelson buys his second 40 acres of land in Johnson Co, IL.
• Nelson and Mary "Polly" Martin go on to have 5 more children in Johnson Co, IL: James Henry b.1854; Mary E. b.1855; Nelson Alexander "Nell" b.1861; Rosencious b.1863; and John Franklin b.1870.
• Nelson Martin died 7 Jul 1887 from  "debility from malignant tumor" as per his death record.
• It's been said that Nelson was a Republican in a decidedly Democrat county in southern Illinois, having been one of only 40 votes for Abraham Lincoln in 1860 in Johnson Co., IL back in the day when your vote was made vocally...in front of everyone.  [Douglass received 1563 votes.]
• It's been said that Nelson Martin served as Justice of the Peace and was a farmer in Johnson Co, IL.
• It's been said that Mary "Polly" was a midwife and knew herbal medicines, and was said to have had her own horse and buggy in order to make house calls.
• Two of Nelson and Mary "Polly's" sons ~ Joel Harrsion [my 2 great-gf] and William Green ~ both served in the Civil War for the Union side.

Please note: Anytime that I used the phrase, "It's been said..." means this information is not verified, but I included it just in case it "rings a bell" with another researcher.  [A girl can hope...]  However, I wish I knew more about Nelson's origins, and more about the relationship between him and the Kerley's and the West's.

So, have you seen this surname ~ MARTIN?

My Mary & Martha Drama

Grand-Aunt Mary

A couple of weeks ago, I introduced you to my Grand-Aunt Mary on my dad's side.  This was the Mary who married Harry, who owned a dairy.  [Sorry, couldn't resist...]  I also mentioned she wasn't my only Mary in my family tree.  [...not by a long shot]  Name rhymes aside though, what we name our children is very personal, and so it's logical to think that it was the same way for our ancestors.  Furthermore, these naming practices lead to patterns, which are helpful for researching our family trees.

Mary & Martha Drama

Today I'd like to introduce you to another Mary and her sister Martha [or who I believe is her sister].  [I kid you not ~ a Mary and a Martha.]  Since I only want to point out the naming patterns, I'm going to give you a quick synopsis of each of the involved families and their supposed relationships with each other.  Not all the information is proven; I'm still in the process of researching.  However, there have been many obstacles in my research and in reviewing the information [repeatedly], I came across some convincing naming patterns, of which my Mary and Martha are involved.  Let me just state first what my theory is.  Mary's and Martha's maiden name is Casteel.  That's a fact, and I think that they are "missing" daughters of a Henry and Mary Casteel of Wayne County, Tennessee, but I'm lacking proof.  With that being said let me introduce you to the cast of my "Mary & Martha Drama."

The Cast and Some of Their Past ~ Not To Mention the Setting

1. Remember my Paw Paw [my grandmother on my dad's side]?  Her 1st Great Grandparents [which are my 3rd great-grandparents] were Nelson & Mary Ann "Polly" (Casteel) Martin.  Nelson was b. abt 1819 in NC, and Mary was born in abt 1820 in Davidson Co., TN.  They married in 1841 in Wayne Co., TN.  They moved to Johnson Co., IL between 1841 & 1850, and were living there in District 2 in the 1850 census.  [Side note: This is the line that I'm named after with my middle name, Martin.]

2. Daniel & Mary "Polly" (?) Kerley [another Mary] were both born in NC, Daniel b.abt 1790.  Relationship to my Nelson & Mary: supposedly Daniel raised my Nelson.  In the 1840 census Daniel & Mary are living in Wayne Co., TN, and in the 1850 census, Daniel & Mary are living in Dist.2, Johnson Co., IL.  Guess who's living with them ~ my Nelson & Mary with 4 of their children.  They probably moved together between 1841-1850 from Wayne Co., TN to Johnson Co., IL.  Also, Daniel and Mary had a biological son name Osburne who was b.abt 1812 in NC.

3. Woodson & Martha (Casteel) West ~ Woodson was b.abt 1809 in NC & Martha was b.abt 1815 in Davidson Co., TN.  They were married in Williamson Co., TN.  Relationship to my Nelson & Mary: I believe Martha is a sister to my Mary.  Woodson was supposedly raised by Daniel & Mary Kerley, like my Nelson.  In the 1840 census Woodson & Martha are living next door in Wayne Co., TN. to Osburne Kerley, who is Daniel & Mary's son.  Woodson & Mary's first 6 children were born in Tennessee.  In the 1850 census Woodson & Mary are living in District 2, Johnson Co., IL near the rest of this "cast".  Obviously, they, too, probably moved from Wayne Co., TN to Johnson Co., IL with everyone else.

4. Osburne & Mary (?) Kerley [sigh, another Mary] were both born abt 1811/1812 in NC.  In 1840, they were next door neighbors to Woodson & Mary (Casteel) West in Wayne Co., TN.  Osburne was the son of Daniel and Mary Kerley, and was suppposedly raised with my Nelson Martin and Woodson West.  In 1850, they were living in Dist. 2, Johnson Co., IL next door to his parents and my Nelson and Mary.

5. Henry & Mary "Polly" Casteel [Good grief on these Mary's, right?]  The only Casteel heads of households in the 1840 census for Wayne Co., TN are Henry and his son Andrew.  Andrew is on the same census page as Osburne Kerley and Woodson West.  Henry is also living nearby.  Now, Henry is believed to be born in Greene Co., TN, and based on common migrational routes of the time period, for Henry to go from Greene Co., TN to Wayne Co., TN, he probably would've traveled through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky, then back down into Tennessee into what is now known as Nashville, Davidson Co., TN.  Then south, possibly through Williamson Co., to Wayne Co., TN.

Confused?  Don't worry.  I was just trying to establish their relationships with each other based on some proven information and some supposed clues.  There are more than just naming patterns here, but basically you have several families that knew each other and all but Henry & Mary Casteel moved from Wayne Co., TN to Johnson Co., IL.  Now, let's take a look at the names of these families.

CASTEEL
Henry & Mary "Polly" (?) Casteel's children: Andrew, Preston Henry, William Riley, John James, Edward, and Lucinda.  [This is the family that I think my Mary & Martha belong to.  By the way, their birth dates fit into this family, too.]  Below are these children's families.  In bold are the ones that seem to repeat.

Andrew Casteel's children: Mary Ann Margaret, Sarah Jane, Lydia C., James Anderson, Louis C., Nancy Adeline, William Henry, John E., and Franklin

Preston Henry Casteel's children: John Henry, Martha Ann, Lydia Jane, and Mary E.

William Riley Casteel's children: Narcisa Tebetha, Joseph F., Minerva Elizabeth, Nancy C., John Henry P., Eliza J., Martha A., William Lafayette, Sarah Malissa, and Susan Jane.

John James Casteel's children: James A., Mary "Polly" Ann, Martha Jane, Sarah R., and Elizabeth

MARTIN [my family]
Nelson & Mary "Polly" Ann (Casteel) Martin: Joel H. [my 2nd great-grandfather], William Green, Andrew Taylor, Genoria Ann, Martha Jane, James Henry, Mary E., Nelson Alexander, Rosencious, and John Franklin. [The Nelson's here aren't a part of the Casteel name pattern, but a part of the Martin one.]

WEST
Woodson & Martha (Casteel) West: Henry, James A., Osburne H, Mary, Martha, William, Amanda E., Narcissie Catherine, Fannie, and Emily.

KERLEY
Osburne & Mary (?) Kerley: Noble A., Daniel McQuillen, Woodson B., Elizabeth, and Nancy E.

[The Woodson and Osburne patterns, as well as the Nelson Martin one, strengthen the theory of the relationships between these families.  They aren't a part of the Casteel name pattern.]

Please tell me you see the naming patterns/repetitions here, too.  They don't follow a particular pattern, but they do repeat.  Mary and Martha both named children after themselves as well as each other.  In the families of the known children of Henry & Mary Casteel, in the listing above either a Mary and/or a Martha and/or Mary's middle name [Ann] were used.  Plus,  the names of the sons of Henry and Mary Casteel appear in Mary's and Martha's childrens' names.  Also, everyone seems to use the name Henry.  When I put these patterns/repetitions into the migrational and relational context [that I provided when I introduced this cast], I felt so much more motivated to pursue my theory of Mary and Martha being sisters and daughters of Henry Casteel and motivated to prove it.  My point in all this, I guess, is that looking for and finding naming patterns/repetitions can help find your family.  Now, I know that some people cringe when looking at so many of the same names in the generations of a family, and it can be discouraging.  Some people view it even as a curse.  I prefer to look at it as a blessing, though.  Albeit, one that I curse now and again!

Modern Naming Patterns

Remember my Grand-Aunt Mary that I mentioned before?  You know, the Mary who married a Harry, the owner of a dairy?  Well, I, too, am a grand-aunt.  [I love that title!]  My grand-niece is part of a naming pattern, too: my mom, her first-born daughter, and her first-born daughter, and my grand-niece [who is also first-born]  all have the middle name Marie. So as far as I'm concerned, everyone can keep honoring other family members by naming their children after them, even [and it pains me to say this] the Mary's. [As if you needed my permission...]  By the way, need I point out that Marie is a form of Mary?  Sheesh!  What is it with these Mary's?