Various Bunce Lineages, Part 2

Part II of miscellaneous Bunce lineages, not known to be related to my own Bunce family.

To find a name quickly, use the search or find feature on your web browser.

To:    “M Archer”
From: Bonnie Bunce
Date: 11/19/98, 6:36 PM
Subj: Michigan Bunces

At 12:22 PM 11/19/98 -0800, you wrote:

> I found this item in Historical Hand-Atlas Illustrated an outline
> map and history of Monroe Co., MI, 1881 from H. H. Hardesty & Co., Pub.,
> Chicago and Toledo, p. 195, under London Twp., “JOHN BUNCE—was born in
> Berkshire county, Massachusetts, August 22, 1803. He has been thrice
> married. His first wife, Mary Smith, to whom he was married September 2,
> 1825, was born October 15, 1803, died November 26, 1838. Her children are:
> John J., born June 27, 1825; Lucy E., November 12, 1827; Sally L.,
> October 12, 1829, died in 1840; Caroline, April 28, 1833; Sarah A.,
> January 21, 1834. Mr. Bunce’s second wife was Fanny Ferster (Sacket), born
> in 1819, married April 26, 1839, and died December 12, 1844. Her children
> are: Laura, born July 26, 1840, resides at Grand Rapids, Michigan; James H.,
> born March 19, 1842, died in 1846; Hannah M., December 25, 1848,
> resides in Milan village; Fanny, December 12, 1844, resides in Clair
> county, Michigan. Mr. Bunce married his third wife, Dorcas Carpenter
> (Hurd), February 8, 1850, in Washtenaw county, Michigan. Their children
> are: Alice L., born September 9, 1852, died September 18, 1853; Henry W.,
> December 24, 1855, resides in London township; Jennie, December 19, 1857,
> resides in the village of Milan. Mrs. Dorcas Bunce was formerly married to
> Isaac W. Hurd. Their son, Andrew J., was captured by the rebels and killed
> near Huntsville, Alabama. He belonged to the army of the Potomac, and
> participated in all the main battles from the beginning of the war until
> the time of his death. His children are: Maria L., born March 24, 1886,
> resides in Saline, Michigan; George W., May 31, 1838, resides in Dundee;
> Andrew J., July 18, 1840, died November 28, 1863; Hannah E., May 2, 1842,
> died in 1844; Mary A., March 3, 1844, died in 1844. Mrs. Bunce was born
> in Livingston county, New York, January 21, 1815. Her father, Joshua
> Carpenter, died in 1824; her mother, Hannah (Fegles) Carpenter, died in
> 1863. Mr. Bunce resides in London township; settled in Monroe county in
> 1833. His father, Ephraim Bunce, died in 1839; his mother Hannah
> (Spalding) Bunce, died in 1850. He has held the office of supervisor of
> London township two years, and served more than 20 years as justice of the
> peace; has held many other offices, including that of commisioner of
> highways, which he held four years. He is a retired farmer, with address
> at Milan village, Monroe county, Michigan.
>
> I haven’t been able to find out the name of Fanny (Ferster) Sackett’s
> first husband. She had a child by him named Arden, who was living with his
> step-father and his third wife in the 1850 census, ae 12 yrs. I am
> primarily interested in the Sackett and Firster families. I’m hoping you
> know more about these people, particularly, the children of John Bunce and
> his second wife Fanny.
>
> I scanned through the info I found on your Web site. I couldn’t find
> a connection. Can you? Any help or direction will be greatly appreciated.
> Thanks in advance.

Hi Marc. No, I don’t know anything about these Bunce, Sackett and Firster families, BUT I have seen the name of Ephraim and Hannah (Spalding) Bunce before. I’ll have to look through my Bunce file, if you’re interested in that information. Thanks for letting me know about this biographical sketch. I try to keep every little tidbit, because you never know how all the pieces will fit together eventually.

The following is from a manuscript entitled Genealogy of the Bunce Family of Connecticut, as compiled by Mrs. Alice Kennedy Howard during the period of 1960-1971 in a section on Miscellaneous Bunces or those for whom she could find no connection to Thomas Bunce of Hartford, Connecticut p. 225:

On the next few pages the history of two early settlers (and their descendants), who lived just over the Conn. line in Mass. I feel certain these two early pioneers belonged to one of the Conn. families, but to date all efforts to establish their origin have failed.

Eleanor was the dau of Thomas & Elizabeth Wells and she was b. in Kinderhook [Columbia Co.], N.Y. Ira, his wife and dau are buried in Riverside Cem., No. Egremont. In the 1850 Egremont census Ira is listed as a farmer, b. Mass., age 53; Eleanor b. N.Y. age 54, and following children in household: Ensign, age 24 b. Mass.; Daniel 20 b. N.Y.; James 16 b. Mass.; and Anne 18 b. N.Y.

[NOTE: There was further information on the grandchildren and great grandchildren of Ira Bunce in this record, but I am missing p. 226, which contains a lot of it, and there is also information on his living descendants in the record which I did not feel was appropriate to place on the WWW.]

On pp. 229-230 of the manuscript entitled Genealogy of the Bunce Family of Connecticut, as compiled by Mrs. Alice Kennedy Howard during the period of 1960-1971, is information on another Bunce family with ties to Berkshire Co., Massachusetts, but the early members of which actually resided in the small town of Hillsdale (formerly Nobletown), Columbia Co., New York.

The other BUNCE families living in West Stockbridge, Alford, Sheffield and Great Barrington, Mass. are as follows:

Above names and ages obtained from Egremont census of 1850, which lists these people living in household of Cornelius Bunce.

The following are copies of emails I got from Chuck Danis concerning his descent from the family of Mathias Bunce, recorded in the above section.

Date: 28 Mar 95 22:44
From: Charles Danis
To: bonnie bunce
Subj: Bunces in Berkshire County

Bonnie:

If you’re researching Bunces in Columbia Co. NY in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, you are probably not looking at descendants of the English Bunce family of Hartford, but at members of the prolific Dutch Bunt/Bont/Bond family. Pronounce the plural of “Bunt,” and you will understand how the name was corrupted to Bunce. It took me years to figure this out. I will explain.

My great-grandfather, was Charles Wheaton Bunce, b. 14 Apr. 1854 in Alford, Berkshire Co. MA. His parents were William A. Bunce, b. abt. 1821, prob. in Great Barrington, Berkshire Co. MA, and Charity Williams. William and Charity operated a farm in Alford which had been established by William's father, Matthias Bunce, b. 22 Jul 1780, Columbia Co. NY. Matthias’ father was also named Matthias, and also prob. b. Columbia Co.

Like you, I always assumed that I would someday be able to tie all these Bunces back to Thomas of Hartford. Then I started researching church records, especially of the Dutch Reformed Church, in Columbia Co., looking for descendants in another line. By accident I discovered hordes of Bunts, Bonts and Bonds. In one of those rare moments of sudden illumination, I realized that this was my Bunce family. Turning to the index, I found Bunces, Bunts and Bonds indexed interchangeably. I found a Matthias, or “Matias” Bunt who turned out to be the elder Matthias Bunce. There even appeared to be yet a third Matthias, perhaps the father of Matthias, Sr. Looking further, I found the baptism of the younger Matthias “Bond,” in Claverack, Columbia Co. NY, and many baptisms of children of the elder Matthias and his wife Eleanor/Elonar/Lena Gerner, in various churches in and around Columbia Co. The last name is spelled variably: Bunt, Bond and Bunce. Matthias is also creatively and changeably spelled (“Thys” is my favorite).

Here comes the interesting part. The godparents of Matthias “Bond,” my 3d great grandfather, upon his baptism in Claverack, 24 Sep 1780, were Peter “Bond” and his wife Gesje Livingston. I also have Peter and Gesje having their daughter Hannah baptised 26 Oct 1788 in Hudson, Columbia Co. NY, and they certainly could have been living in Hillsdale by 1810 (by which time the “Bunce” spelling had become more common). I wonder if this is the same Peter as yours. Does it match what you have in your family Bible? Any mention of any of my Bunces there?

[BMB Note: According to a message posted to the GenForum Livingston board, this Peter and Gesje (Livingston) Bond/Bunce were too young to have been the parents of my g.g.grandfather Peter Bunce (born in 1772), as they were only 10 years younger.]

Anyway, given the area and the time you are looking at, I would say that chances are better than even that your Bunce line, like mine, is really a “Bunts” line. The best genealogy of the Hartford Bunces is “Genealogy of the Bunce Family of Connecticut,” by Alice Kennedy Howard, 1960-1971. The author put my Bunce family in the back of the book as a branch that she had not been able to connect back to Thomas. No wonder—in truth, my Bunces are not connected at all. This book may help you determine if you have a connection back to Thomas, though. There is a copy in the NY public library.

For research on the Bunce family as it was in transition from being the Bunt/Bont/Bond family, I recommend the series of transcribed church records of Columbia Co. compiled by Arthur C. M. Kelly. If these aren't available where you are (which is where?), give me a bit more information about the family of Peter Bunce and I’ll look at the set we have here.

Your probable cousin, Chuck Danis

p.s. Don’t worry — being Dutch isn’t so bad.

Date: 4 Apr 95 17:41
From: Charles Danis <[email protected]>
To: bonnie bunce
Subj: Berkshire Bunces

Bonnie:
Thanks for your recent e-mail. I had put the Bunces “on the shelf” for a while, partly out of frustration, and your information has caused me to look at some dormant files. Here are some random comments and bits of information which may be of interest:

The William Bunce whose land records were found by Mr. Moore might be the William Bunce found in the 1820 census of Egremont. The household had one male over 45, presumably William, three females under 10, and one female 16 to 26. The age distribution suggests that this was William's second wife and that she was much younger than he. It is at least possible that this William was old enough to be the father of your Peter, Sr. The other land-owning William Bunce was my g.g.grandfather, who owned land in Alford. He could not have been your Peter’s father.

[BMB Note: From information received from my aunt, I believe this may have been the family of William and Sarah (Sturges) Bunce who later moved to Saratoga Co., New York.]

You mentioned the baptismal record of Eve, d/o Matthias and Eleanor (my 4th g.grandparents), at Nobletown, recorded in the records of St. James Church, Great Barrington, cited by Mr. Howard as the only Bunce baptism there. The reference is undoubtedly to the records of the Rev. Gideon Bostwick, who was pastor of this church and kept records dating from 1770 to 1793. Rev. Bostwick was a missionary who traveled throughout the region, baptizing, marrying and burying as he went, under the aegis of the St. James church. In addition to the baptism of Eve, these records include several other Bunce baptisms, but they are recorded under the Bunt spelling then in more common use by the Dutch Bunces. There are two other children of Matthias and Eleanor, and the following: Mariche Bunt, d/o Ephraim and Mariche, bap. 6/17/1770 in Nobletown, on the same day as the baptism of a child of Matthias and Eleanor; Abraham Bunt, s/o William and May, bap. 5/17/1773 in Nobletown; Jacob Bunt, s/o Mindert and Cate, bap. 12/8/1789 in Hudson; and Hannah Bunt, d/o Peter and Gesie, bap. 10/26/1788 in Hudson.

There were also numerous Bond/Bont/Bunt baptisms from the 1730's to the 1780's in Zion Lutheran Church, Loonenburg, Greene Co. and in the Dutch Reformed Chruches in Claverack, Columbia Co., and Coxsackie, Greene Co., all of which would then have been in Albany Co.

During the time we are researching, the border between NY and MA was ill defined, especially around Nobletown, Egremont and Alford. Events recorded as occurring in Nobletown might easily have occurred in present-day MA, or vice versa. There was a period when neither state claimed Nobletown, as a result of which it temporarily became a den of thieves eager to take advantage of the lack of any controlling authority.

There are records of Matthias Sr.’s children being baptized in Nobletown, but he shows up in Great Barrington MA in 1820, after which I lose track of him. His son Matthias Jr. bought farm land in Alford MA in 1826 which was farmed by him, and then his son William and one of his grandsons until 1878, when William sold the land and moved to Richford, Tioga Co. NY, where he continued to farm with his son Harvey. My g.grandfather, Charles Wheaton Bunce, had married and left home by then for a factory job in Pittsfield. As I continue to look for evidence of Matthias Sr., I will keep an eye out for your Peter.

On the subject of the two distinct Bunce clans, it is certainly possible that descendants of Thos. Bunce lived in present-day Columbia Co. during the time period we are researching. If they did, however, I think it may fairly be said that they would have been greatly outnumbered by members of the Dutch Bunt/Bont/Bond/Bunce family there. Hence my suggestion that your Bunce line, purely on the basis of “the odds,” more likely is connected to the Dutch family.

The example of Jacob Bunce is illustrative. One can document at least two people of that name from the Dutch family at the time in question, but the connection of any Jacob Bunce living there to the CT Bunces seems largely based on conjecture.

[BMB Note:  In a message posted on a genealogical bulletin board, the woman posting it said that as she was driving out of the town of Canaan, Litchfield Co., Connecticut, there was a sign on the road pointing the way to a highway to Albany, New York. She pointed out that a lot of current roads and highways had been used as major migration routes in colonial times, and she realized that that route could very well have been the same one taken by her ancestor from Connecticut to New York state. Also per the following messages on the Usenet board soc.genealogy.german “Fort Orange” is now the city of Albany:

soc.genealogy.german
Date: 19 May 98 19:54:01
From: Carol Kennedy
To: All
Subj: 1732

Thanks for the suggestion Mike. This is a toughy. Could be one of the Ritserts went to Holland from Hesse and then to the U.S. I wonder if that Fort Orange had something to do with the naming of Orange Co., NY, which is further south. I appreciate your thoughts and time.
Carol Ritsert Kennedy

Mark H. Finger wrote:
> Carol,
> Fort Orange was a Dutch colony from 1624-1664 when the
> British took it over and renamed it Albany. So I would think
> the family was Dutch.
>
> Mark Finger
> [email protected]

soc.genealogy.german
Date: 20 May 98 13:29:28
From: "Arthur Hagen"
To: All
Subj: 1732

Carol Kennedy heeft geschreven...
> Hello everyone,
> I found a Stephanus Ritsert who was christened 9 Jul 1732
> at the Albany First Dutch Reformed Church in NY. Parents
> were John and Elyz Ritsert.
> +The church has no other info, and I have found none thus far.
> Would it be wrong of me to assume that they emmigrated at that
> early time because of religion? Any ideas?

Possible, but why go all the way to Beverwijck (established 1624, now known as Albany) in the former “Nieuw Nederland” area (roughly located where now lies state of New York with Nieuw Amsterdam (New York) as its capital)? In The Netherlands itself (much closer to Hessen) we enjoyed religious freedom in that day and age.

Groeten,
Arthur Hagen]

The root of the problem is that Mrs. Howard, probably the most well-known Bunce researcher and certainly the producer of the best-known Bunce genealogy, clearly was completely unaware of the Dutch family which had begun adopting the Bunce name in the late 1700’s. Witness the fact that she picked up the baptism of Matthias Sr.’s daughter Eve in the Bostwick records, recorded under “Bunce,” but didn’t catch the baptisms of two other of his children, or of several other members of the family, in the same records because Rev. Bostwick recorded them under “Bunt.” She never made the connection. I think that she and many subsequent Bunce researchers have too easily assumed that Bunces found in colonial Albany Co. or Berkshire Co. MA were descended from Thomas, based on slender or non-existent evidence. The presence of known descendants of Thomas in Bennington VT is a good example. Berkshire is the largest county in the state, extending from its southern border to the northern border, along its western edge. The Bunces are concentrated in a few towns in its southwestern corner—nowhere near Bennington VT and separated from it by formidable mountain ranges. To me, the presence of Bunces in Bennington says nothing at all about the origin of the Bunces in southern Berkshire.

I guess the point I am making is that one can easily document the fact that significant numbers of the Columbia Co. and Berkshire Co. Bunces descend from the Dutch family; on the other hand, with few exceptions (and your family may be one), the idea that any of them descend from Thos. Bunce usually requires some assumptions and leaps of faith along the way.

The Dutch Bunces are remarkably under-researched. As you suggest, the lack of records is a problem. I understand that no fewer than three Hillsdale courthouses have burned to the ground, taking records with them all three times. Thank you for the information on Hillsdale cemeteries. I have gone trudging through some of them with little luck. I wasn’t aware that anyone had recorded the inscriptions. There is also a published history of Greene Co. (originally a part of Albany Co.) that you might want to look at. I’ll see if I can find the title.

[BMB Note:  I did a search on the Sutro Library PAC and found the titles of several books by Minnie Cohen and Harriett M. Wiles about Columbia Co., NY cemetery inscrip­tions, which I had sent to Chuck previously.]

Regards, Chuck

To: Chuck Danis <[email protected]>
Date: 9 Apr 1995
From: [email protected]
Subj: Bunces in Columbia Co. NY—2 of 2

The following is a quote from Kelly’s book Settlers and Residents Town of Livingston, Vol. 3, Part 1, pp. 18-19, which shows people from New England were living at Noble Town, (perhaps even Bunces):

Abstracts of affidavits taken in the dispute between
Livingston and Claverack (dates in front of each paragraph)

8.26.1762     Lovejoy, Benjamin, tavernkeeper, lives at Noble Town, 59y old. Settled at this place 10 or 11y ago as a tenant under Col. John Van Renselaer. That when he came here several persons lived there as tenants under the said Col. Van Renselaer who had been some years before, namely, Wm. White, Cornelius Sharpe, Philip Fray, Jochum Van Volkengergh, Joseph Pixley, Wm. White, Jr. Robert Noble and several others. That the said place now called Noble Town was then called Kakeout. That the said place was first settled by the now Col. Rensealer’s fathers. That there are about 100 tenants in the said Noble Town and a town called Spencer Town.

8.28.1762     Van Volkenbergh, Jochum, Noble Town, farmer 69y. Settled at this place by Col. Renselaer before it was so called. About 8y ago a riot was com­mitted there by sundry new England people joined by some of the tenants who held under the said Col. Renselaer and from that time it obtained the name Noble Town.

[Emphasis added.]

I don’t want to confuse you, but simply state that I really don’t know who my earliest immigrant ancestor may have been in my Bunce line. As for being Dutch, I already am a smidgen, thru my 3rd great grandmother, Tryntie Slawter, as she was baptised in 1765, later she was called Catherine Slaughter, who m. Samuel Kress, a German. Their grand-daughter, Mary Bolender Kress m. my g.grandfather, Peter Bunce, Jr. at Starkey’s Corners in Yates Co. NY in 1846. Part of the fun of genealogy for me is figuring out how many different nationalities I descend from. I think it’s 7 or 8 now. A regular Heinz 57! :-)

Hope you have a Happy Easter, if I don’t hear from you before then. :-)

Record James A. L. Bunce Family

In a letter dated 21 May 1986, from Mr. Russell Bidlack of Detroit, Michigan, he stated the following, which is somewhat condensed:

James A[vory] L[udlow] Bunce (there is some question as to what the middle initials “A. L.” stood for) was b. 1797, Rensselaer Co., NY, and d. in Genesee Twp., Whiteside Co., Illinois, 28 Mar 1860. Mr. Bidlack believed James A. L. Bunce was a son of Daniel Bunce, a g.g.grandson of Thomas Bunce, an original proprietor of Hartford, Conn., who was living in Rensselaer Co., NY about the time that James was born, but he had not found any proof of this relationship by 1986. James A. L. Bunce married Esther Lewis, daughter of Comfort Lewis prior to Sept., 1822, which is when Comfort Lewis drew up his will in Wayne Co., NY.

James and Esther (Lewis) Bunce had 11 children born between 1823 and 1845 as follows. All their children had either a first name or middle name starting with the letter “D,” and Mr. Bidlack's grandmother remembered a joke passed down in the family that if there had been another child, the parents were supposed to have said that they would have had to name him “Devil.”

  1. Daniel A. Deloss Bunce, b. ca. 1823. As of the date of this letter, Mr. Bidlack said nothing was known about what had happened to Daniel A. Deloss Bunce, except a tradition in the family which said he became a practicing physician, and a descendant of his youngest brother thought that Daniel’s wife was named Sarah.

  2. Jacob Delaney Bunce, b. ca. 1825, was thought to have married a woman named Melissa ______, moved to Canada, then to “Misseota,” possibly a typographical error for Minnesota, in the 1850s, then lived in Rochester, [probably Rochester, Olmsted Co., Minnesota?], where he was a merchant. In the latter part of her life, Jacob’s mother, Esther (Lewis) Bunce, lived part of the year with Jacob’s family in Minnesota? and part of the year with her daughter, Delia, who continued to live in Illinois. He and his wife were said to have had the following children:

    1. Lucretia Bunce.
    2. George Bunce.
    3. Huldah Bunce.
    4. James Bunce.
    5. Edgar Bunce.
    6. Mary Bunce.

  3. Lydia Debra Bunce, b. ca. 1826, married Ebenezer Bowman, and they moved from Illinois to Bourbon Co., Kansas in 1873. They had several children not named in the letter.

  4. Lewis Demott Bunce, b. 29 Sep 1827, served in the Civil War, after which he became a Utah pioneer. His wife had converted to the Mormon faith in 1853, and eventually he had no fewer than 11 wives. “With 11 wives, I assume he had many children.”

  5. Delia Ann Bunce, b. 12 Jul 1829 in NY, the author’s great-grandmother, married William Jones Stanley, in Carroll Co., Illinois on 30 Nov 1843. She was only 14 years of age; her husband was 10 years older. His great-grandfather was quoted as saying that he married her when she was so young,so he could raise her the way he wanted her to be. They lived the remainder of their lives in Illinois. She d. 9 Nov 1906, Whiteside Co., Ill. They had at least one child, and perhaps others:

    1. Isabelle Stanley, (grandmother of the author of the letter), who was b. 1861 in Illinois, who married Benjamin Bidlack, and moved to Crawford Co., Iowa in 1884, where she died in 1940.

  6. Charles Dewitt Bunce, b. 3 Sep 1831, d. at Ottumwa, Wapello Co., Iowa, in 1908. His first wife was Sarah Parrish, who died in Story Co., Iowa in 1891. In 1892, Charles married another wife, a widow, but apparently they had no children. He fought in the Civil War, was a prisoner at Andersonville prison, and later collected a pension for his service. In his Civil War pension record is a questionnaire which he filled out dated 15 Jan 1898, wherein he stated the name of his only then living child:

    1. James R. Bunce, b. 6 Jun 1854.

  7. Abigail Darwin Bunce, b. ca. 1837, m. James Dayton, in 1853, presumably in Illinois. No further information.

  8. Densmore Journey Bunce, b. 22 Dec 1838, m. Marinda Griffith in 1858 in Illinois. They remained in Illinois until 1860, when they moved to Lyons, Iowa, and later to Mechanicsville, Cedar Co., and finally to Nevada, Story Co., Iowa. He was a veterinary surgeon and auctioneer, and according to his own account, he was also a hard drinker and gambler until 1886, when he was converted and became a preacher and evangelist. He d. 5 Feb 1924, Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa. He and his wife were said to have had a number of children, but Mr. Bidlack said he knew the names of only two of them:

    1. Della Bunce.
    2. Melvin Bunce.

  9. Danforth Worthington Bunce, b. 7 Sep 1840, also moved to Iowa. He m. Louisa Franklin on 4 May 1858. Apparently she died, and in 1869, he married Louisa C. Burns. He died in Des Moines, Polk Co., Iowa in 1925. His children:

    Child by first wife:

    1. James L. Bunce.

    Children by second wife:

    1. Emma Bunce.
    2. Adelia Bunce.
    3. Mary Bunce.
    4. Harriet Bunce.
    5. Charles Bunce.
    6. William Bunce.
    7. Lerion [sic] Bunce.
    8. Cora Bunce.

  10. Martha Delight Bunce, 14 Jul 1843, m. Myron Pulver. They moved from Illinois to Shelby Co., Iowa in 1887. She d. in 1932, Bayard, Guthrie Co., Iowa. Mr. Bidlack did not say whether they had children or not.

  11. David King Bunce, b. 27 Apr 1845, m. Lizzie Linerod. Mr. Bidlack stated that they had children, but he did not have their names. David K. Bunce d. 1916, in Gilbert, Story Co., Iowa.

From: DAR Patriot Index

John Bunce, bap. 8 Aug 1725, d. 2 May 1798, son of Thomas and Ruth Bunce of Huntington, Suffolk Co., New York, m. Phoebe Smith on 23 Jan 1753 at the First Presbyterian Church, Huntington, New York. Their children:

  1. Thomas Bunce, b. 26 Oct 1760, Huntington, Suffolk Co., New York.

  2. John Bunce, b.ca. 1763 Huntington.

  3. Jeffrey Bunce, b. 6 May 1765, Huntington.

  4. Elkanah Bunce, b.ca. 1768, Huntington.

Thomas Bunce and Ruth ______ m.ca. 1700. He was the son of Edward and Sarah Bunce, the emigrant ancestors from Kent, England.

Bunce — Transcribed Copies of Land Records from Steuben Co., New York

* Biographical information on David L. Bunce

From Grantor Index No. 13-298, original document is handwrit­ten.  These two land sales occurred on the same day, 30 Jun 1824, so David L. Bunce very likely never resided on the property.  Since the first purchaser of the property, Seba Norton Junior appears to have defaulted on his payments, it appears that these land “sales” were just a formality to ensure that the seller “John L. Dox” had clear title to the property.

This Indenture made this thirtieth day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty four between John L. DOX of the village of Geneva in the county of Ontario of the one part and David L. BUNCE of the same place of the other part. Whereas Seba NORTON Junior did by a certain Indenture of release by way of mortgage dated the eighteenth day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty two for the consideration of one hundred and fifty dollars money of account of the United States grant bargain sell release and confirm unto the said John L. DOX and to his heirs and assigns forever all that certain piece or parcel of land situate & lying in the town of Pulteney, Steuben County and State of New York, being known and distinguished by being the northwest corner of lot fourteen and running as follows beginning at the northwest corner and running east one hundred and nineteen rods, and one fourth of a rod, thence south forty two rods and one fourth of a rod, west one hundred and nineteen rods and one fourth of a rod, thence north forty rods and one fourth of a rod, to the place of beginning containing thirty acres and no more together with all and singular the heredita­ments thereunto belonging, and the reversion and revisions remainder and remainders rents issues and profits thereof to have and hold the said described and bargained premises unto the said John L. DOX his heirs and assigns to the only proper use and behoof of the said John L. DOX his heirs and assigns forever provided always and the said release was thereby declared to be upon the condition that if the said Seba NORTON Junior did and should well and truly pay or caused to be paid unto the said John L. DOX the just and full sum of one hundred and fifty dollars on demand with interest according to the condition of a certain bond or writing obligatory bearing even date with the said Indenture executed by the said Seba NORTON Junior to the said John L. DOX that then and from thenceforth the said release and everything therein contained should cease and be void And the said Seba NORTON Junior did by the said release for himself his heirs executors and administrators covenant grant and agree to and with the said John L. DOX his heirs executors administra­tors and assigns that if default should be made in the payment of all or any part of the said principal sum of one hundred fifty dollars at the time or times when the same ought to be paid as aforesaid that then it should and might be lawful for the said John L. DOX his heirs and or assigns to sell and dispose of the said premises above described at public vendue to any person or persons whomsoever and on such sale to make sign seal and deliver any deed or deeds of conveyance in the law for the said premises or any part thereof sold to the purchaser or purchasers his her or their heirs and assigns forever and out of the monies arising or to arise from such sale or sales to retain and keep in his hands the said sum of one hundred and fifty dollars or so much thereof or of the interest thereof as should be then due together with all costs charges and expences [sic] that should or might be due arise or happen by reason or on account of such sale or sales rendering the overplus money if any there should be to the said Seba NORTON Junior his heirs executors or administrators And whereas the execution of the said indenture of release by way of mortgage hath been acknowledged or proved in due course of law and registered in the office of the Clerk of the County of Steuben and the power therein contained authorising [sic] the said sale hath been before the executing of these presents duly acknow­ledged and recorded as other deeds and conveyances usually are and whereas the said Seba NORTON at the time of making and executing the said Indenture was above the age of twenty five years as the law requires And whereas the said Seba NORTON Junior did not pay or cause to be paid to the said John L. DOX the said sum of one hundred fifty dollars at the time limited for the payment thereof or at any time thereafter and whereas the said premises by virtue of the said power contained in the said indenture of release and pursuant to the statute in such case made and provided have been sold at public vendue to the said party of the second part for the sum of seventy dollars money of account of the United States (public notice of such vendue and sale having been given according to law)

Now therefore this Indenture witnesseth that the said John L. DOX in pursuance of the power and act aforesaid and also for and in consideration of the sum of seventy dollars lawful money aforesaid to him in hand paid by the said David L. BUNCE at and before the ensealing and delivery hereof the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged hath granted bar­gained sold aliened [sic] released and confirmed and by these presents doth grant bargain sell alien [sic] release and confirm unto the said David L. BUNCE in his actual possession now being and to his heirs and assigns forever all the land and premises above mentioned and described together with the heredita­ments and appurtenances as the same was conveyed to him by the said Indenture of release by way of mortgage to have and to hold the said land and premises unto the said David L. BUNCE his heirs and assigns to the sole and only proper use and behoof of the said David L. BUNCE his heirs and assigns forever

—In witness whereof the parties hereunto have set their hands and seals have subscribed and set the day and year first above written—

Signed, and delivered   )                       John L. DOX  [SEAL]
in the presence of   )

Nota Bena, the words “for the,” “should,” “dollars,” “time,” which had been written, and the words “heirs executors or administrators,” “executors administrators or assigns,” “lawful money aforesaid,” were all erased and noted here before the execution of this Indenture.

H. V. R. Schermerhorn

State of New York    )

) ss.
Ontario County        )

I the subscriber a Commissioner to perform certain duties of a Judge of the Supreme Court certify that on the seventh day of July A.D. 1824 Henry V. R. SCHERMERHORN [a lawyer] whom I know to be a credible witness personally appeared before me and being duly sworn testified that he saw John L. DOX whom he testifies to be the grantor by that name described in the within deed execute the same that he is the said Henry who set his name as thereto as a witness. — This deed is therefore allowed to be recorded.

D. W. Lewis

Recorded the 18th day of September 1824 at 10 o'clock A.M.

John Metcalfe, Clerk

From Grantee Index No. 13-300, original document is handwritten.

This Indenture made the thirtieth day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty four between David L. BUNCE of the Village of Geneva in the county of Ontario of the first part and John L. DOX of the same place of the second part wit­nesseth that the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of seventy dollars to him in hand paid by the said party of the second part the receipt whereof is hereby confessed and acknow­ledged hath granted bargained sold remised released and by these presents doth grant bargin sell remise release and forever quit claim unto the said party of the second part and to his heirs and assigns forever all that certain piece or parcel of land situate and lying in the town of Pulteney Steuben County and State of New York being known distinguished by being the northwest corner of number fourteen and running as follows beginning at the northwest corner and running east one hundred and nineteen rods and one fourth of a rod, thence south forty rods and one fourth of a rod, thence west one hundred and nine­teen rods and one fourth of a rod, thence north forty rods and one fourth of a rod to the place of begin­ning, containing thirty acres and no more together with all and singular hereditaments and appurte­nances thereunto belonging or in any wise appertain­ing and the reversion and reversions remainder and remainders rents issues and profits thereof and all the estate right title interest claim and demand whatsoever of the said party of the first part either in law or equity of in and to the above bargained premises to the said party of the second part and to his heirs and assigns to the sole and only proper use benefit and behoof of the said party of the second part his heirs and assigns forever

Signed, and delivered  )  David L. Bunce [SEAL]
in the presence of )

H. V. R. Schermerhorn
State of New York    )
) ss.
Ontario County        )

I the subscriber a Commissioner to perform certain duties of a Judge of the Supreme Court certify that on the seventh day of July A.D. 1824 Henry V. R. Schermerhorn whom I know to be a credible witness personally appeared before me and being duly sworn testified that he saw David L. BUNCE whom he testifies to be the grantor by that name described in the within deed execute the same that he is the said Henry who set his name thereto as a witness. — This deed is therefore allowed to be recorded.

D. W. Lewis

Recorded the 18th day of September 1824 at 10 o'clock A.M.

John Metcalfe, Clerk

There is a record of the marriage of David L. BUNCE of Geneva, N.Y. to Louisa RAWSOM, published in a newspaper dated 29 June 1825, and recorded on the website Some Genealogy for Finger Lakes Region New York State. Since he died at the age of 44 years, this may have been his second marriage. This same David L. BUNCE appears to have passed away at the age of 44 years, while still residing at Geneva, Ontario Co., New York, on 13 Feb 1826, since a notice of his death appeared in the Geneva Gazette newspaper per abstract #1288 in the book entitled 10,000 Vital Records of Western New York, 1809-1850, compiled by Fred Q. Bowman, ©1985, and published by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, Md.  Also, there is a probate record for a “David A. Bunce” in the index to probate records on the Ontario County, N.Y. web site which gives only the information that the record was filed in 1826, and the individual had been a resident of Seneca.

FidoNet GENEALOGY
Date: 04-06-94 20:13
From: Richard Small
To: Bonnie Bunce
Subject: Bunces

Although “my” Bunces are not my direct line, I have some interest in them.  My grand aunt, Virginia Truelson, married Frank Nerva Bunce in San Francisco in 1882.  He b. 1860, d. 7 Aug 1908 in CA. Frank was son of William and Jeanette Bunce.  Wm. b. ca. 1818 in NY per 1880 census, d. 1892.  They had sons Joseph, George and Henry also.

Frank and Virginia [Bunce] had:

  1. Clara Sophia [Bunce] b. Oct 1891, d. 1968

  2. Mable Truelson [Bunce] b. 7 Jan 1883, d. 24 Mar 1959

  3. William Francis [Bunce] b. Aug 1884, d. 1960

  4. Jeanette Hudson [Bunce] b. Aug 1888, d. 1915 The Bend OR

  5. Lilian Virginia [Bunce] b. Jan 1894, d. 1930 Portland OR

Have only a little more

Dick

Searching DUNHAM, CONDON (or CONGDON) in ME
--- Maximus/2 2.01wb
* Origin: Programmer’s Haven * Thousand Oaks, CA


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