Civil War Ancestors

One thing I really enjoy about genealogy is that the research we do turns up continual surprises. For instance I have always felt I could ignore the Civil War. After all my direct line were Loyalists and after the American Revolution, they settled along the St. Lawrence River in Canada. My great grandfathers didn’t return to the United States until the 1880’s, both of them settling in North Dakota. But it turns out that relatives - uncles, brothers, cousins - crossed over a lot earlier. So far I have identified 4 men who served with the Union Army.

My great grandfather’s uncle, George Baldwin, moved his family to Frankville, Iowa sometime between 1851 when he was enumerated in the Canadian census and 1856 when he was enumerated in the Iowa State Census. In 1856 his family consisted of his wife Eleanor, sons Silas, age 15, William Henry 13, George 4 and David, not yet 1 and daughters Sarah, 11 and Mary 2. You can see when the Civil War broke out in 1861, Silas was 20 and William Henry was 18. So it is no surprise that they both enlisted.

Silas joined the Iowa 38th Infantry, Company E on September 24, 1862.[i] He was 21 years old. The Iowa 38th Infantry joined Grant’s Army in the siege of Vicksburg. They were positioned in swampy area because there was a rumor that Confederate Calvary was headed to relieve Vicksburg. Descriptions of conditions in the field mention the relentless attack by mosquitoes. The 38th is known for never participating in any battles because 30% of the unit died due to disease. The survivors were assigned to other Iowa regiments. Unfortunately, Silas Baldwin was one of the 30% who succumbed, dying of “swamp fever” on September 10, 1863. He is buried in the military cemetery in Port Huron, LA. His brother William Henry, joined the Iowa 16th Regiment in 1865 and did not see any major action.

My second discovery was certainly a surprise. My great grandmother, Catherine Elizabeth Tweed, was born in Mountain, Dundas County, Canada West on July 1, 1850. She was the daughter of John Tweed and Elizabeth Grue (Add Footnote). The family was enumerated in both the 1851 and 1861 Canadian censuses and then disappeared. Family stories say that John Tweed moved to Erie, PA. So I started checking the 1870 census for Tweeds in Erie. I did not find John or William but I found James with a wife and with his sister, Lizzie, in the household. I looked for evidence of both John and William and although I have never found a trace of John, I was surprised to find William Tweed in Cleveland, OH. He enlisted in the regular Union Army on June 7, 1865, 18th Infantry Division, Company E.[ii] His name is William Sidney, 18 years old, born in Mountain, Canada, painter by trade. He had gray eyes, light hair, fair complexion and stood 5 feet 8 inches tall.

This week I was looking at the siblings of my great great grandmother, Charity Winegard Van Camp, and found her brother Abraham Winegard in Lisbon, St. Lawrence, New York where he enlisted in the 39th New York Infantry, Company D on September 12, 1864.[iii] He was born December 27, 1835 in New York. His parents were John Winegard and Martha Bartlett (probably a transcription error since his mother was Maria Barclay). He was married. The record also indicates that he saw action at Fort Hill and some other minor skirmishes. Fort Hill was a fortification overlooking the city of Frankfort, KY. Kentucky remained in the Union but there were large pockets of Rebels living in the state and attempts were made to take the capitol and declare Kentucky for the Confederacy. Abraham was discharged on July 1, 1865.

I wonder how many other ancestors I will find fighting in the Civil War.

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[i] Historical Data Systems, "US, Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865," database, Ancestry (www.ancestry.com : accessed 29 Jan 2015), Service record for Silas Baldwin; Citing Iowa records. 

[ii] Register of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M233, 81 rolls); Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C., Ancestry (www.ancestry.com : accessed 29 Jan 2015),, Service record for William Sidney Tweed

[iii] New York State Archives, Albany, New York; Town Clerks’ Registers of men Who Served in the Civil War, ca 1861-1865: (N-Ar)13774, Box Number: 51: Roll Number:28; [Database on-line]( Ancestry.com : accessed 29 Jan 2015), Service record for Abraham Winegard

Catherine Shannon Wynne

One of My Brick Walls

I think it is time to try and tackle some of my brick walls. I have 3 great great grandmothers whose parents are mysteries. All of them lived in Canada in the nineteenth century. I have decided that it is time to review what I know about each of these women and to figure out where I can go from here. First I want to tackle Catherine Shannon. Here is what I know about her.

She first appears in records (at least those I have found) on 2 April 1838 when she married Edward Wynne in Beckwith Township, Lanark, Canada West. The marriage was performed by Daniel Berney, a Wesleyan Methodist minister, by banns. Witnesses were William Wynne and William James, the brother and brother-in-law of the groom.[i]

This family appears in the 1861, 1871, 1881 and 1891 Census of Canada.I have been unable to locate them in the 1851 Census although Montague Township was enumerated and does survive. Perhaps, the family was away the day the census taker came around and he didn’t return. In 1861, the family consisted of Edward Wynne, age 47, born in Ireland and his wife Catherine Wynne, age 45, also born in Ireland. Church affiliation is given as Church of England probably because there was no established Methodist Church close by. The following children were living with them: Mary, age 22, Elizabeth, 20, Wesley, 18, Jane, 17, Margaret, 16, Sarah, 14, Abraham, 12, Edward, Jr., 10, Catherine, 9, William, 8, Hezekiah, 6 and Albert, 4. This family lived in a one story log house.[ii] In 1871 Edward Wynne, age 60 and Catherine, 54, still report Irish births and are now Wesleyan Methodists. Children living at home include Edward, 18, farm laborer, Jane, 24, school mistress, Margaret, 22, Sarah, 20, Catherine 17, William, 15, Albert, 13, Alice 9, and Frederick, 6.[iii] In 1881, the family consisted of Edward 68, Catherine, 63, Elizabeth, 30, Elena (Alice Helena), 18, and Frederick, 16. Edward and Catherine said they were born in Ireland and the family is still Methodist.[iv] In 1891, The family consisted of Catherine, 75, widowed, Elizabeth, 35 and Elena, 26.  Catherine said she was born in Ireland and both her parents were born in Ireland and now is a member of the Canadian Presbyterian Church.[v]

Edward died on January 9, 1890 and Catherine followed him almost two years later, dying on December 17, 1891. Both are buried in Union Cemetery, Merrickville, Leeds and Grenville, Ontario. Merrickville was the town closest to their farm.

What should be my next steps. I can’t believe that with 14 children, one of them didn’t leave information about their parents and hopefully grandparents. I have done some research on the children bur need to do more in-depth work. Abraham Wynne is my great grandfather. He moved to St. Thomas, North Dakota in the 1880’s along with a couple of his siblings. I think my first step would be to try and reconnect with some of my second cousins and see if anyone knows who Catherine’s parents were. I have not found anything in the papers my father left. I also need to see if I can find an obituary for Catherine and Edward. So far I have not found a good repository for Ontario newspapers. But in 1890 obituaries were becoming popular. It is possible that one was done for Catherine Shannon. I wonder if Merrickville has a library. Hmm.

I also can check to see if Union Cemetery has any records that might be informative. They might have at least a more detailed birth location than just “Ireland”. I have not been able to find a death registration for Catherine or Edward Wynne although they were required and had been since 1869. Also more research into church records might prove profitable. It is interesting that church affiliation changed toward the end of their lives. Cemetery records may tell me who the officiating minister was.

Lots of work to do. Any suggestions for further research would be welcome.

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[i] Bathurst District Marriage Register-, The Marriage Registers of Upper Canada/ Canada West, Volume 1, page22. 1831-1848. Filmed by the Genealogy Society of Utah, Film # 1030051. 

 [ii] 1861 Census of Canada [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009.. Roll: C-1042-1043, Montague, Lanark, ED: 9, Page: 13.

[iii] 1871 Census of Canada, Montague, Lanark South, Ontario; Roll: C-10017; Family No: 314. [Database On-line,] Ancestry.com. 

 [iv] 1881 Canadian Census Household Record, 1881 Census, Place: Montague, Lanark South, Ontario; Roll: C-13233;Family No: 101[ Database On-line], Ancestry.com.

[v] 1891 census of Canada, Ontario, sub-district 84, Montague, dwelling 21, RG 31; T-6331. 

Helena Gertrude Wynne Baldwin

I am sure that I have descended from a long line of strong women and my grandmother, Helena Gertrude Wynne Baldwin, called Lena by her family, was one of them. Lena was born on November 7, 1878 in Renfrew, Ontario, Canada, the eldest child of Abraham and Catherine (Van Camp) Wynne. When she was 8 years old, the family moved with friends and relatives to Pembina County, North Dakota. The family settled in St. Thomas. My grandfather had 320 acres in St. Thomas Township that he farmed, but the family primarily lived in town having a clapboard house on Main Street. My grandmother grew up here receiving an education, learning to play the piano and learning all the other accomplishments deemed necessary for late nineteenth century women.

On February 27, 1900, Lena married Daniel Webster Baldwin. They would share 52 years together before Lena died on December 11, 1952. In the 1900 census, the D.W. Baldwin family is living in Midland Township, Pembina County, North Dakota probably on a 160 acre plot owned by William Reuben Baldwin, Daniel’s father. William Baldwin also owned a 350 acre plot in St. Thomas Township that is still owned and farmed by the Baldwin family. Living in this household were Daniel Baldwin, wife Helena and Archie Levere, Daniel’s 19 year old cousin. It was certainly a change in living conditions to go from town living to living on a farm. Three children would be born to this couple while thy lived in Midland Township.

In 1906 we find the family enumerated in the 1906 Canada Census of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. They were living in Humboldt, Saskatchewan. The family consisted of Daniel 28, Helena 27, Ellen 5, Edward 4, and Isabelle 3. Daniel’s occupation is listed as general agent. I had heard stories in the family that my grandfather sold land for the Canadian Pacific Railroad when he was young but I always assumed this was before he got married, but apparently not. This sales job didn’t last long because on November 29, 1908, my father was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota. My grandfather was the manager of an International Harvester equipment and supply store in Grand Forks. As you can tell, Daniel doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life. His wife is there giving him support while he struggles with the question, “Who am I?”. And we think this is a 21st century problem.

In Grand Forks they lived in a white two-story house along the Red River on Seward Street until sometime after 1914. Another baby, named for her mother,  was born in November 1910. This child died when she was 3 1/2 years old from blood poisoning. She sustained a puncture wound to the foot. I asked my father once if he remembered his sister. He said no but he remembered his mother crying. He was 5 years old at the time. Sometime after their youngest child died, my grandfather decided to move his family again. I think there were so many bad memories associated with Grand Forks that my grandmother was relieved to be able to say goodbye and start a new chapter in her life.

The family moved to Langdon, North Dakota, the county seat of Cavalier County. They lived in town for a while while my grandfather managed the feed and grain business in town. They were living in a rented house on Charlotte Street when they were enumerated in the 1920 census. Another daughter was born in 1918. It was a difficult delivery and Ruth suffered permanent brain damage. My father went to grade school in Langdon but before he was ready for high school, the family moved to a farm out in the “scrub brush”, as my uncle Bob described it. Daniel decided that he really wanted to be a farmer. Robert Wynne Baldwin was born in July of 1920 and spent most of his childhood on farms. My grandfather rented a succession of farms until about 1940 when he was able to buy one close to Langdon.

My grandmother died when I was not yet 10 years old so I don’t have many memories of her. But I do remember how hard she worked in the summer when the men were getting in the crops. She prepared 5 meals every day - a big breakfast with eggs, bacon, ham, oatmeal, fruit; a snack that we carried out to the field about 10 - sandwiches and cookies with lemonade; a sit down dinner at noon with a roast, potatoes, vegetables and usually pies; another snack about 4 - more sandwiches, cookies and drinks and supper at dusk. Between these meals, she would bake the cookies and pies, prepare the vegetables, do the laundry and other chores that always need to be done. Before going to bed at night, she would have the table all set for breakfast. I decided right then that the life of a farmer’s wife was not for me.

I always liked this picture of my grandparents. I estimate it was taken sometime about 1940 at their farm. My grandmother looks strong and confident. A woman who had experienced life and knew she was up to the task.