Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: My Family in 16 May 1865

For this week's mission (should you decide to accept it), I challenge you to:

1)  Determine where your ancestral families were on 16 May 1865 - 150 years ago.

2)  List your ancestors, their family members, their birth and death years, and their residence location (as close as possible).  Do you have a photograph of their residence from about that time, and does the residence still exist?

3)  Tell us all about it in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook Status or Google+ Stream post.

My family on May 17, 1865:

This would have been my great-great grandparents and their parents in most cases. I've detailed as much as I know. Feel free to fill in details if you have them and would like to contribute.

Leon Seneft may have been born or not, but given that his wife was born about 1851, it seems likely he was. However, I know nothing about his childhood, his parents, or even where he was born. I suspect he may have been born in Galicia, as that is where his children were born.

Mindel Hilinger was born about 1851, so she would have been 14 or thereabouts. But like Leon, I have no information before her children were born, so I don't even know where she was born, let alone how many siblings she had or the names of her parents. We'll just call these two "Eastern Europe" for now, and leave it at that.

Like the Senefts, I have little on Benzion Kresch aside from a location and general date of death. His wife was born in about 1870, so it is possible he wasn't even alive yet. If he was, I'd venture to say he lived somewhere in Northern Galicia, possibly in or around Resezow.

Jens Christian Hansen was born in 1858 in Vejle, Denmark, which would have made him about 7 years old. His parents, Hans Knudsen (born 1824) and Christine Jensdatter (born 1834) would have been 41 and 31 respectively. I believe they had a farm in Vejle, and lived there with their children. At the time, there would have been three: Jens, Ane Marie (born 1860), and Karen (born April 1865). His paternal grandparents Knud Knudsen (born 1794, died 1866) and Ane Marie Hansdatter (born 1797, died 1876) and his maternal grandparents Jens Christian Pedersen (born 1798, died 1876) and Mette Matisdatter (born 1804, died 1898) were also still alive at that time. Knud would have been 73 and Ane Marie 70. Jens would have been 69, and Mette would have been 61. Both sets of grandparents also lived in Vejle. I believe all of the rest of the previous generation were gone by that point, though I could be wrong, as I do not have all the death dates for that generation.

Else Larsen was not alive yet, as she was born in October of that year, but her parents, Jorgen Larsen (born 1837) and Ivare Kirstine Christiensen (born 1845) had just married two years before in 1863. In 1865, Jorgen would have been 28, and Kirstine 20. They also lived in Vejle, Denmark. At this time, I do not have death dates for Jorgen's parents, so they may or may not have been alive at the time. Lars Andersen was born in 1794, which would have made him 73, and Birthe Marie Sorensen was born in 1798, which would have made her 69. If alive, they would also have been living in Vejle. Kirstine's parents, Kresten Hansen (born 1809, died 1890) and Else Katrine Ivarsdatter (born 1815, died 1893) were definitely alive at that time. Kresten would have been 56, and Else only 50. I do not have a complete listing of their children, but it seems the other daughter I do have listed for them, Katrine, was born about this time. And even if I am wrong, it is likely their younger children would still have been living at home. The Hansens also lived in Vejle. I only have one death date for the previous generation, which is well before 1865, so I will assume most or all of the ones I have names for were gone.

Rasmus Hansen was born in Soro, Denmark in 1845, which would have made him 20. He had a farm there he inherited from his parents, which I am certain he was living on at the time. I do not believe he had inherited it yet, however. His parents, Hans Nielsen and Maren Rasmusdatter would also have been living on the farm at the time. Hans was born in 1816, and so would have been only 49. Maren was born in 1817, so she would have been 48. Of the children I have listed for them, two were older than Rasmus, but I do not have records for either of them after 1860, so I am uncertain if they were alive at the time. I also have records for three younger children, but again, nothing after 1860, so I am uncertain if any were alive or not. Hans' parents were both gone more than ten years by this time. I have no record of Maren's parents at all.

Maren Sofie Olsen was born 1855 in Soro, Denmark. She would have been almost 10 years old in May of 1865. Her father Ole Larsen was born in 1812, which would have made him 53 or so. According to the family story, Ole left Denmark around the time Maren was born and came to America, settling in Minnesota with his brother Oscar. If that is true, at this time, he would have been living in Minnesota, though I do not have evidence yet to back this up beyond the family stories I have gathered. His wife, Birthe Marie Schroder (born 1819) would have been 46. He left her behind and never sent for her, so she and her daughter (or daughters—she had two from a previous marriage, though I am uncertain if they were alive at this time) remained in Denmark, struggling to make ends meet. I have no information on his parents, and no death date for her father, but her mother had been dead for more than thirty years by this time.

Henrik Bergithon Bordewich was born 1862 in Nordland, Norway, so he would have just turned 3 in February of that year. He was his parent's second child, and one of two living children at that time. His parents, Hans Henrik Bordewich (born 1834) and Karen Dorothea Angell (born 1835) would have been 31 and 30 respectively. Hans's father, Johan Petter Bordewich (born 1802) was still alive at that time, and would have been 63, living with his second wife, Henrikke (who we will get to in a bit here…). His first wife had died almost 20 years before. Karen's father had also been dead about 20 years, but her mother, Rechardina Hendricha Klaeboe (born 1795) was still alive, and would have been 71.

Leonharde Marie Bordewich was born in 1861, also in Nordland, Norway, so she would have been 4. Her father was Johan Petter (the same as Henrik's grandfather), her mother was his second wife, Pauline Henrikke Roness (born 1828). She would have been 37 years old. Three of their four children would still have been living in the household with them: Ida Amalie Bernhardine (born 1858), Leonharde, and Anna Magdalena (born 1862). Their youngest was not born for another two years. The whole Bordewich family lived in the Lofoten Islands in Norway. Johan's parents were both gone by this time, and I do not have dates of death for Henrikke's parents. Henrik Hansen was born in 1793, which would have made him 73, and Susanne Pedersdatter was born in 1787, which would have made her 79. I believe they lived in So-Trondelag, Norway, or would have if they were still alive.

Robert James Park was born in 1851 in Antrum, Ireland. He would have been almost 14 in 1865. I have almost no information on his family, but it's likely one or both of his parents, John Park and a Miss Dunlop (I still suspect her name was Mary) were alive at that time. I do not know when they were born, or where, or when or where they died. Nor do I know how many other children they had.

Elizabeth Curran was born in Antrum, Ireland in mid 1862, so she would not have even been 3 at that time. She was the eldest of her siblings, and was about to become a big sister in fall of that year. Her parents, Thomas Curran (born 1840) and Jennie Blair (born 1838) were 25 and 27 respectively. From the few records I have been able to gather, Thomas's father, Francis Curran (born 1814) was also still alive at that time, and living in Antrum as well. He would have been 51. I have no information on his wife, or their other children at this time. And I do not have enough information on Jennie's father, John Blair, to determine if he was alive or his age at that time, and absolutely no information on the rest of her family at all. All of the family seems to have been born or lived in Antrim.

Benjamin Jones was born about 1837 in Southern Wales. He would have been about 28. The earliest record I have found for him is a 1871 Welsh Census with his brother Joseph, who was 13 years younger than him, and their mother, Mary, who was 58 in that Census, and therefore would have been 52 in 1865. I am uncertain where they would have been living in 1865 aside from saying Southern Wales.

Hannah Griffiths was born in 1849 in Southern Wales. She would have been 16 or so in 1865. I have absolutely no information on her parents or siblings.

Gabriel Howells was born in 1849 in Northern Wales, so he would have been almost 16 at that time. His parents, Howell Gabriel (born 1822) and Catherine Jones (born 1825) would have been 43 and 40 respectively. They had six or seven children at the time: Gabriel, Evan (born 1854), Edward (born 1856), Lewis (born 1859), Catherine (born 1862), and Hugh (born 1864). Howell (listed as born 1865) may also have been born at this time, and one more was born after as well. The family lived in a farm in Dolgelly Wales, that was later inherited by Edward, I believe. For Gabriel's grandparents, I have only spotty information. His grandfathers are both listed as deceased by this time, but I have no birth death dates for either Gwen Evan, or Catherine Evans, so they might have been alive.

Selina Roberts was born in 1846 in Northern Wales, so she would have been just shy of 19. Her parents' names were Hugh Roberts and Ellen Pugh (or possibly Griffiths) I have no information on her parents' birth or death dates, but I do know they survived long enough to meet at least one of her children, as I have a shot of them with one, so they were likely alive at this time as well.

As you can see, my family was pretty spread out at this time. Ireland, Wales, Denmark, Norway, Eastern Europe, and even America. Of my great-great grandparents that I know exist, all but one were born by this time, which makes 15 ancestors alive.  Of the parents I know for those ancestors, I have record of another 21 living. And a possible 15 more the generation before that. For a total of 51 known ancestors living at that time.