Mystery Monday: My grandfather's move across Nebraska

Sometime between the birth of my Aunt Berneice [sic] in 1921 and my father in 1927, my paternal grandfather, Joseph Huigens, headed west from Knox Co. in northeast Nebraska to Sheridan Co. in the northwest part of the state.


Map Courtesy of Digital-Topo-Maps.com

According to my grandfather's obituary, the move occured sometime prior to Jan. 1926.

In 1920 he was farming 480 acres that he rented from his father in sections 3 and 11 of Logan Township, about 10 miles west of Creighton, NE. He was also renting 160 acres he owned in section 9 to a John Parkhurst. (Source: 1920 Atlas of Knox County, Nebraska)

According to my mom, he rented the land he farmed in Sheridan Co. from Logan C. Musser of Rushville, NE.

The mystery is when did he move and, more importantly, why. Did he sell the land he owned in Knox Co.? If so, to whom? Why did he end the lease arrangement with his father and move across the state to rent land? Was it economics or family dynamics?

I wish I had raised some of these questions before my dad's stroke and before all his siblings were gone. Maybe my mom can provide some answers. I can also see what my dad's nieces and nephews and his cousins who are still around Creighton know. There's also land records and directories in Knox Co. and Sheridan Co. to go through. Plenty of places to go looking for more nuggets of family history.

SNGF: Very Best 2010 Research

This is easy since I didn't do much research this year. The best was the overnight trip my wife and I took downstate to Bloomington/Normal to access the Marshall County records in the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) at Illinois State University. I didn't find as much as I had hoped for. I did however make a major find--the marriage license for my great-great-grandparents Edward HUIGENS and Catherine TOEMMES.  I did a little happy dance when I found this since I had no info on when or where these two had been married.

On this record, my Dutch great-great-grandfather is listed as "Edward Huigens," which is but one of the many forms of his name in the records.  My great-great-grandmother's surname has lost one of its m's in both places on the record. 

The license was issued on 3-May-1854.  The marriage appears to have taken place on "4-Juny-1854."  JUNY?!?!?!  At least that's how I read it.  And the officiating priest wrote it that way three times.  It's a head scratcher.  I'm assuming that should be 4-June-1854.  It's closer than July to when the license was issued and I doubt they would have been married on the 4th of July.  June 4th was a Sunday in 1854 and July 4th was a Tuesday.  A Sunday wedding makes more sense than a Tuesday one in a farming community.  A check in the church records may provide more info.

The priest's name will take some research to decipher.  Maybe Wm. Pettnaimer?  He signs himself a Catholic priest from LaSalle, Ills.  It shouldn't be too hard to find a list of the Catholic priests in LaSalle in 1854.  The location of the ceremony will also take some research.  I need to determine which Catholic churches in Marshall Co. were built when.  It appears they were married by a traveling priest from LaSalle so it may not have been in a church or if it was, it was a parish that did not yet have a priest permanently assigned.

The rest of the trip was just as lovely as my wife and I had a quiet, romantic  dinner in downtown Bloomington and a lovely drive down and back.  Overall a very satisfying weekend.

Surname Saturday - 29: Jönsdotter, et al,

2011, the year in which I try to post more.  We'll see how long that lasts.

Another Swedish surname mess.

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

14. Gustav Adolph JOHNSON (b. 18 Aug 1867 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 1899 in Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 25 Dec 1941 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)
15. Rosabell "Rose" STRAYER (b. 23 Aug 1872 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 7 May 1955 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)

28. Carl Jacob JOHNSON (b. 1 Jul 1832 in Vrångfall, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 18 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 17 Oct 1915 in Orion, Henry Co., IL, USA)
29. Christina Lotta JÖNSDOTTER (b. 4 Jul 1839 in Slottsbäcken, Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 10 Oct 1919 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA)

She went by "Stina" and her full middle name may be "Carlotta."

And on to the patronymics.

58. Jonas NILSSON (b. 12 May 1796 in Junkerhorfva, Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 7 Feb 1819 in Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 14 Oct 1862 in Locknevi, Vimmerby, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden)
59. Lisa PERSDOTTER (b. 22 Oct 1796 in Strömsnäs Av Bergebo, Hjorted, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, d. 22 Apr 1848 in Sweden)

116. Nils SVENSSON (d. 1805
117. Anna JONSDOTTER(b. abt 1769)

That is as far back as I have info on this line.  As before with my Swedish heritage, a lot of the info comes from my third-cousin Brenda in Seattle.

Surname Saturday - 27: Adelbush

Back at it again this week.  

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

12. William Fredrick OGDEN (b. 10 Oct 1871 in Simcoe, Norfolk Co., Ontario, Canada, m. 25 Jan. 1895 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, d. 19 May 1951 in Platteville, Grant Co., WI, USA)
13. Mary Elizabeth HERREN (b. 22 Dec 1873 in Batavia, Scott Twp., Sheboygan Co., WI, USA, d. 14 Nov 1938 in Mission, Todd Co., SD, USA)

26. John Fredrick HERREN (b. Nov 1847 in WI, m. 1868 in WI, d. 8 May 1920 in Charles Mix Co., SD)
27. Julia Ann ADELBUSH (b. Jun 1850 in WI, d. 24 Aug 1912 in Charles Mix Co., SD)

54. John Jacob ADELBUSH (b. 23 Oct 1817 in Wurttemberg [Germany], m. about in 1839 perhaps in Dutchess Co., NY, d. 20 Feb 1901 in Sheboygan Co., WI)
55. Gertrude A. UNKNOWN (b. 18 May 1818 in NY, d. 6 May 1879 probably in Sheboygan Co., WI)

108. Jacob ADELBUSH (b. abt 1780 in Germany)
This is the second line of my German Wisconsin ancestors.  The Adelbushes came from Wurttemberg, Germany. You can read about the history of this area here.  As far as I can tell from what little research I've done on this line, they immigrated to Dutchess County, NY in the Hudson River Valley and then moved on to Sheboygan Co., WI.  You can view a plat map for Scott Township, Sheboygan Co. from 1889 here. J.Adelbush is located in Section 11.  John Adelbush is in Section 15.

Surname Saturday - 25: Gibbon

After several weeks (OK, months) off, I'm back with a new post.  This week it's my Scottish ancestry.  Max and Isabella, this one's for you.

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

12. William Fredrick OGDEN (b. 10 Oct 1871 in Simcoe, Norfolk Co., Ontario, Canada, m. 25 Jan. 1895 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, d. 19 May 1951 in Platteville, Grant Co., WI, USA)
13. Mary Elizabeth HERREN (b. 22 Dec 1873 in Batavia, Scott Twp., Sheboygan Co., WI, USA, d. 14 Nov 1938 in Mission, Todd Co., SD, USA)

24. James Robert OGDEN (b. 9 Feb 1836 in New Brunswick, Canada, m. 12 Nov 1861 in Grey Co., Ontario, Canada, d. 6 Aug 1910 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)
25. Hannah GIBBON (b. 10 Feb 1837 in Chinguacousy, Peel Co., Ontario, Canada, d. 18 Apr 1927 in Denby, Shannon Co., SD, USA) 

50. John GIBBON (b. 1803 in Scotland, m. around 1830 in Scotland, d. 1889 in Scotland, Bon Homme Co., SD, USA)
51. Margaret DAVIDSON (b. around 1810 in Scotland, d. Aug 1842 in Chinguacousy, Peel Co., Ontario, Canada)

John Gibbon (pictured above with his grandson, William F. Ogden, and his second wife, Isabella) emigrated from Scotland to Canada around 1836.  He then moved to South Dakota between 1871 and 1880.  His first wife died in 1842 and he married Isabella Davidson, possibly the sister of his late wife, in 1849.  He probably came from Aberdeenshire as that's where the Gibbon surname is most common.  Some on-line family trees link him to a John Gibbon who was a shoemaker in Aberdeenshire in the 1841 Scotland Census, but he was already in Canada by then, based on the birth of his daughter, Hanna in Ontario in 1837.  He first appears in Canada in the 1842 Ontario Census.

Having 2 Scottish great-great-great-grandparents makes me 1/16th Scottish.  Now I just need to know what tartan I should get my kilt in.