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Amanuensis Monday: Marriage Bond for Edward Roberts and Rosy Stewart, 1800

Marriage Bond for Edward Roberts and Rosy Stewart, 1800.
Marriage Bond for Edward Roberts and Rosy Stewart, 25 February 1800, Clark County, Kentucky. (Click to enlarge.)

Roberts Family (Click for Family Tree)

In the early days of our country, communities policed themselves by making the whole group responsible for keeping everyone legal. Marriage, of course, was one of the most important legal events- paternity and inheritance were very much affected by a marriage, thus there were certain rules for a betrothed couple to follow.

Generally, ‘marriage banns’ were read and/or posted at the church or meeting house each week for three successive weeks. By announcing their intention to marry, the couple was open to community scrutiny. Anyone could come forward and declare some legal reason they should not be married. (“Speak now or forever hold your peace.”) These reasons included that the prospective bride, groom, or both, were either:

a) already married to someone else

b) too young to marry, and/or

c) too closely related, such as first cousins

If a couple planned to be married in a place where one or both were not well known, or if the marriage was to take place quickly, they would provide a marriage bond instead of banns. Since our ancestors Edward Roberts and Rosey Stewart lived out on the frontier of our country (Kentucky in 1800), there might not have been a church or minister nearby to read or publish banns. Marriage bonds were also a southern custom, and common in the mid-Atlantic states as well. (The Roberts family may have lived in the mid-Atlantic states prior to Kentucky, but that’s another post.)

The marriage bond would stipulate that if there was later found some legal reason that the couple should not have been married, the bondsman would pay the Governor of the state an agreed-upon sum of money as a penalty. The groom would sign, and the bride would be represented by a male usually of her family, since women had few legal rights. Her representative was the bondsman, and often her father, but could be another male such as a brother, guardian, uncle, family friend, etc., or even (!) her mother if no other male was available.

Contrary to popular belief today, a marriage bond was NOT a guarantee that a marriage would take place. If the couple did not follow through with the marriage, the bond did not have to be paid at all. It would only be paid after the marriage and only if the union was found to have been illegal, such as the bride being underage.

Outer paper of Stewart-Roberts File. Note spelling of names.
Outer paper of Stewart-Roberts File. Note spelling of names. (Click to enlarge.)

It is amazing to be able to see this marriage bond that was written 216 years ago! It was signed on 25 February 1800, and Edward and Rosey were married two days later in Clark County, Kentucky. A Charles Stewart signed the bond to represent Rosey, and many researchers (myself included) have thought that meant he was her father. He might be, but he could also have been the only relative she had in Kentucky at that time. So we do need more research to prove her father.

Following is my transcription of the document. Some of the words are hard to make out, so please let us know if you think there should be some changes to the transcription.

Know all men by these presents
that we Edward Robbards & Chas. Steward are held
and firmly bound unto James Garrard, Esq’r Governor
of this commonwealth & his successors in the sum
of Fifty pounds to which payment well & tru-
ly to be made to the Said Governor & his successors we
bind ourselves our heirs Exers [Executors] & AD’mos (Administrators) jointly Severa-
ly firmly by these presents Sealed and Dated this
25th Day of Feby   1800

The Condition of the above
is such that whereas there is a marriage
Shortly intended to be had & Solemized between
the above bound Edwd Robbards & Rosey
Steward if therefore there be no lawful
cause to obstruct the same then this obligation
to be void else to remain in full force

Sealed & Delivered                          Edward Robbards [seal]
in presents [large mark- X]            Charles Steward [seal]

 

Notes, Sources, and References: 

  1. An ‘amanuensis’ (ə-măn′yo͞o-ĕn′sĭs) is a person who takes dictation or who copies a literary work. It is Latin for “slave at handwriting.” It is also used for someone who transcribes.
  2. Marriage bond from Clark County, Kentucky, possibly county clerk’s office. Received from a cousin many, many years ago.
  3. Dodd, Jordan. Kentucky Marriages, 1802-1850 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997. Ancestry.com, accessed 04/08/2016.
  4. “United States Marriage Records, 3.2 Marriage Bonds”, FamilySearch Wiki,  https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/United_States_Marriage_Records. Accessed 04/08/16
  5. “Bonds That Bind: What’s a Marriage Bond – and Why?” by Richard Pence.   http://www.pipeline.com/~richardpence/bonds2.htm. Accessed 04/08/16.
  6. “The Ties that Bond” by Judy Russell, The Legal Genealogist, http://www.legalgenealogist.com/blog/2012/01/25/the-ties-that-bond/. Accessed 04/08/16.

 

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Original content copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

Family history is meant to be shared, but the original content of this site may NOT be used for any commercial purposes unless explicit written permission is received from both the blog owner and author. Blogs or websites with ads and/or any income-generating components are included under “commercial purposes,” as are the large genealogy database websites. Sites that republish original HeritageRamblings.net content as their own are in violation of copyright as well, and use of full content is not permitted.
 
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Workday Wednesday: John W. Roberts, Farmer

The John W. Roberts Family: from left, John W, Tressa, Clyde, wife Sarah Ansbach Roberts, and Candace Roberts. Taken about 1891, from the William Roberts Family Album.
The John W. Roberts Family: from left, John W, Tressa, Clyde, wife Sarah (Anspach) Roberts, and daughter Candace Roberts. Taken before 10 Sept 1900, when John died. Sarah may have been expecting their son Leon in this image, from the Lloyd Roberts Family Album.

Roberts Family (Click for Family Tree)

The state of Indiana has great, rich, bountiful soil, and our Roberts ancestors farmed it for generations. Hard work, long days, and weather that could not be controlled was, and still is, the daily life of a farmer. A whole year’s work- and income- could be lost in a minute with one big storm. That’s the workday world of a farmer, and his family.

John W. Roberts tilled the land as did his father, William Roberts (1827-1891). As a boy William would have also learned, at his father’s side, the intricacies of working with Mother Nature, as did his own father, John S. Roberts (1805-1875). And John’s father, our (currently believed) immigrant ancestor Edward Roberts (abt 1775-1830), worked in agriculture too, per the 1820 US Federal Census for Ripley County, Indiana- the household had 3 persons engaged in agriculture. So at least four generations of Roberts men tilled the land, and likely many more.

John W. Roberts was the oldest of the surviving children of Sarah Christie (1829-1912) and her husband William Roberts. John was born on the 1st day of the new year of 1849, in Ripley County, Indiana. His young life would have been filled with the busy outdoor life of an Indiana farm boy during the third quarter of the 1800s. The family had moved to Adams, Decatur County, Indiana, about 1860. His brother, George Lucas Roberts, was born there in November of 1860; John was 11 years old at that time. His second brother, Isaac Henry Roberts was born three years later, in 1863, in the midst of the Civil War.

Although Indiana was a strong supporter of the Union during the Civil War, there were pockets of southern sympathizers. We can only surmise the political leanings of the Roberts family, since William’s father, John S. Roberts, had been born in Kentucky, a slave state. However, the 1810 and 1820 US Federal Censuses for the Edward Roberts family (John S. was a son) did not include slaves. The family had moved to Indiana by about 1825, so may have changed sympathies if they had indeed been pro-slave. Or maybe the move to Indiana was to escape the politics and economics of living in a slave state.

John W.’s father had been required to register for the 1863 Civil War draft, but was listed as Class II due to his age and marital state, thus most likely would not be drafted. John was only 14, so exempt. The family must have let out a collective sigh of relief, although the young brothers may have been itching to go off to war, as young boys are wont to do.

It was in Adams, Indiana, that John W. married Sarah J. Anspach (1854-1931) on 6 February 1879. They had five children together:

Tressvylian “Tressa” Roberts born in December of 1879; never married, d. 10 Sept 1945 in Butlerville, Warren, Ohio.

Candace Roberts, born 14 Mar 1883, in Boone Co., Indiana per some sources. She married Winfield S. Shepherd and died 31 Dec 1950 in Decatur Co., Indiana.

Clyde C. Roberts, born 14 Nov 1885 in Indiana but died at age 18, on 15 Aug 1903.

Leon Roberts was born in April of 1891 in Indiana. He married Lucile G. Bristol on 16 Sept 1917 in Lansing, Michigan, though he was then living in Detroit. Leon died in December of 1976 in Lansing, Michigan.

Glennie or Glenna Roberts, born July 1893 in Indiana per some sources, but others, including Find A Grave, state that John W. Roberts died on 10 September 1900. Adding Glenna’s birth and John’s death date to the “more research needed” list.

John W. and Sarah lived in Greensburg, Decatur, Indiana in their later years. He worked in the insurance business.

John died 10 September 1900, possibly in Greensburg; their son Leon was born the following April.

Sarah continued living in Greensburg, and was enumerated in the 1910 US Federal Census as widowed, head of household with son 18 y/o son Leon, who was a driver for a delivery wagon, and daughter Glennie Roberts, 16, a typesetter in a printing office living in the home. Sarah worked on her own account as an agent in the dry goods business.

Sarah was living with her daughter Glenna who had married Ernest Maple, plus their two children in Liberty, Shelby County, Indiana, at the 1930 US Federal Census.

Some Ancestry trees list the death of Sarah J. Ansbach Roberts as 28 February 1937 in Greensburg, Indiana; others claim 25 December 1931 in Fremont, Ohio. We have not been able to verify either, but Sarah had remained a widow for 37 years. They are both buried in South Park Cemetery in Greensburg.

 

Notes, Sources, and References: 

  1. Lloyd Roberts Family Photo Collection.
  2. Ancestry.com for US Federal Censuses, City Directories, marriage records.

 

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We would love to read your thoughts and comments about this post (see form below), and thank you for your time! All comments are moderated, however, due to the high intelligence and persistence of spammers/hackers who really should be putting their smarts to use for the public good instead of spamming our little blog.
 

Original content copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

Family history is meant to be shared, but the original content of this site may NOT be used for any commercial purposes unless explicit written permission is received from both the blog owner and author. Blogs or websites with ads and/or any income-generating components are included under “commercial purposes,” as are the large genealogy database websites. Sites that republish original HeritageRamblings.net content as their own are in violation of copyright as well, and use of full content is not permitted.
 
Descendants and researchers MAY download images and posts to share with their families, and use the information on their family trees or in family history books with a small number of reprints. Please make sure to credit and cite the information properly.
 
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Typewriters on Tuesday- Roberts, Daniel(s), Murrell Family History

Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 1 of 3.
Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 1 of 3. (Click to enlarge.)

Roberts Family, Daniel Family, Murrell Family (Click for Family Tree)

Apparently today, 23 June, is the anniversary of the first typewriter patent. Like all inventions, it would have stood on the work of many before, including an early machine that impressed letters into paper, invented in 1575 by an Italian printmaker.

It is hard to imagine life with only printing presses and the pen- the typewriter made it possible for the average person to easily communicate in a legible fashion. My grandmother had terrible handwriting, so her typewritten letters, with all their mistakes and correction fluid/tape, and the carbon copies, are invaluable. They are especially important since cursive writing is no longer being taught in school, and younger generations cannot really read it sometimes, much less write it.

How many family histories were typewritten, like the above? Some were bound into books or booklets, or just fastened with a staple as the Roberts-Murrell family history in this post. The folks listed in this history are at least 3 generations ago, so some of this information might be lost but for the painstakingly typewritten treasures some of our families are lucky to have today.

My grandmother, her contemporaries, and their ancestors would be so amazed at the leap in communication with today’s word processors and OCR technology.

Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 2 of 3.
Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 2 of 3. (Click to enlarge.)

The images in this post are a report for the 1946 family reunion of the Roberts family in Jasper County, Iowa. I received it back in the late 1960s, from a Roberts descendant in Newton, Jasper, Iowa. Click on our new “Family Documents” section to download the entire pdf of this file more easily than the images in this post: Roberts, Daniel(s), Murrell Family History, 1946.

Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 3 of 3.
Roberts-Murrell Family History, 1946. Part 3 of 3. (Click to enlarge.)

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have some pictures from that reunion? They are probably out there somewhere… hopefully labeled with names and the date! If any of our dear readers have such pictures, please let us know through a comment on this post or our “Contact Us” form. We would love to share other Roberts, Murrell, Daniel(s), and Blount treasures.

 

Notes, Sources, and References: 

1) Family treasure chest item received in the 1960s.

 

Please contact us if you would like higher resolution images. Click to enlarge images.

We would love to read your thoughts and comments about this post (see form below), and thank you for your time! All comments are moderated, however, due to the high intelligence and persistence of spammers/hackers who really should be putting their smarts to use for the public good instead of spamming our little blog.
 

Original content copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

Family history is meant to be shared, but the original content of this site may NOT be used for any commercial purposes unless explicit written permission is received from both the blog owner and author. Blogs or websites with ads and/or any income-generating components are included under “commercial purposes,” as are the large genealogy database websites. Sites that republish original HeritageRamblings.net content as their own are in violation of copyright as well, and use of full content is not permitted.
 
Descendants and researchers MAY download images and posts to share with their families, and use the information on their family trees or in family history books with a small number of reprints. Please make sure to credit and cite the information properly.
 
Please contact us if you have any questions about copyright of our blog material.