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Isaac H. MILLIKEN’s name appears on a short biography on p. 585 in the section for Tescumseh township, Shawnee County in History of the State of Kansas by William G. Cutler, published in Chicago 1883 by A. T. Andreas. It states:

ISAAC H. MILLIKEN, farmer, Section 10, P. O. Big Springs, Douglas County. Owns 160 acres, about 70 acres cultivated and ninety in pasture. Has twenty-five head of cattle. Came to Kansas in August, 1864, locating in Tescumseh Township. Moved in 1867 to Douglas County, and came from there to this place in 1869. Has been a member of the School Board for two terms. Enlisted in July, 1863, as a private in Company B, One Hundred and Sixty-first Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Detailed on duty in the Quartermaster’s Department as teamster, and dis­charged on certificate of disability in August, 1864. Born in Ohio September 11, 1844, and came from there to Kansas. Was married December 12, 1866, to Miss Sidney H. Hilligoss, and has six children—Mary E., Nettie F., Lola B., Gertrude E., Rosa L., and Clyde. Is a member of the Seventh Day Advent Church.

It would appear from the above sketch that the “Miss Milliken” who married John Roberts was one of Isaac Milliken’s daugh­ters, rather than his sister, since Isaac Milliken also had a son named Clyde, who is mentioned in the Bunce Genealogy and History, as the brother of “Miss Milliken.” Also Isaac Milliken was said to have been “91 yrs. old in 1930’s,” and that would conform with the information on the above Isaac Milliken who was born in 1844, since by 1935 he would have been 91 years old.

On the other hand, the following query appears to add infor­ma­tion to the Bunce Genealogy and History record on the Roberts family, and would appear to support the conclusion that the wife of John Roberts was the sister of Isaac Milliken, rather than his daughter as speculated in the above paragraph, based on her date of birth, and therefore it is probable that she and Isaac Milliken also had a brother named Clyde. Since this record was added to the supplement on 19 Apr 2002, it is unknown whether this is a current email address for the individual who posted the message.

Roots-L mailing list query:

I’m looking for ANY information concerning the following Tecumseh, Shawnee Co., KS family.

-John Wesley ROBERTS b. 1833 d. 1890 m. 1859 Rebecca Frances MILLIKEN b. 1835

--Elizabeth Matilda ROBERTS b. 1864 m. 1887 O. M. WHILTON
--Evalena Worthington ROBERTS b. 1867 m. 1891 A. McCLELLAND
--Maud May ROBERTS b. 1870 m. 1894 A. K. DELONG
--Nina Jane ROBERTS b. 1862 m. 1883 J. L. HUME
--Roy Carson ROBERTS b. 1873 d. 1886
--Victoria Gibbone ROBERTS b. 1865 d. 1899 m. 1894 Wesley BUNCE
--William Braden ROBERTS b. 1860 m. 1894 Minnie E WHILTON

--Nina ROBERTS

--John Hume ROBERTS

spouse names: BUNCE, DELONG, HUME, McCLELLAND, WHILTON
[email protected]

[Emphasis added.]

The correct spelling of Amy MONSEES’ name is “Aimee,” as found on the 1880 New York City Soundex census, where her name appears in the household of her parents, John and Ellen M. (CLARK) MONSEES, age 9, birthplace: Ireland. Why her birthplace was recorded as Ireland is not known, unless the census taker was wrong in recording the information, which now (May, 2004) appears to have been the case, since the names of her parents are on the 1870 census for New York City, New York. Aimee F. Monsees married James F. Ryan (son of Michael J. and Margaret F. (Foley) Ryan) in New York City on 28 Jun 1893. and they were the parents of 8 children born between 1894 and 1910.

Annie (LOFTUS) MONSEES, wife of George MONSEES, is probably buried with him and his mother at St. John Cemetery in Middle Village, New York. Source: Letter to Bonnie Bunce from Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, dated 14 Jul 1992, which says Anna M. MONSEES was age 53 when she died and she was interred at St. John Cemetery 1 Jan 1940. She was buried in the same plot as Ellen Mary (CLARK) MONSEES, as was her husband, George MONSEES, when he later died at age 78, and was interred on 28 Nov 1958. Another Monsees researcher has the maiden name of Annie Monsees as Loddy, rather than Loftus.

Clarence B. MONSEES was age 30 years at the time of the 1920 New Yok City census, taken 12 Jan 1920. He was then living with his widowed mother, Ellen M. (CLARK) MONSEES at 253 W. Houston St. in Manhattan Borough, occupation: salesman. This record is on the microfilmed 1920 U.S. census, Supervisor's District No. 1, Enumeration Dist. No. 91, sheet 5, Manhattan Borough. This address is significant because it is the same address which appears on the New York City marriage certificate of Mary V. MONSEES to Charles C. COLE on 2 May 1912, and also was the address given as the place of death for John H. MONSEES, Jr. (Certificate No. 8750) on 20 Mar 1909. Also, they were the only ones living at that address with the surname “MONSEES,” and there appears to have been 5 apartments at this address, so I believe it may have been an old mansion that had been converted into apartments, or “tenement” as stated on the death certificate for John Henry Monsees, Jr. in 1909. According to a TV program this seems to have been a common practice in the area where they lived, i.e. Greenwich Village. This accords with the story told by Evelyn V. COLE, that her grandmother had been a widow for 19 years prior to her death in 1928. Clarence B. MONSEES was recorded as the owner of the grave in St. John Cemetery of Middle Village, New York, where his mother was buried, and where in November, 1958, having died at age 70, he, too, was buried. Clarence Monsees was married twice, but his first wife’s name is unknown. He married (2) Madeleine Regina Moore about 1957, but had no children. Both are buried near his mother.

Edward MONSEES, male, age 3, appeared on the 1880 census record for New York City in the household headed by John MONSEES. Source: Soundex card of census record Vol. 49, Enumeration District 103, Sheet 9, Line 41, street address: 275 Hudson Street. Also see additional information below.

The correct maiden name of the mother of Mary Veronica MONSEES was Ellen Mary CLARK. The 1880 New York City census, Vol. 49, Enumeration District 103, Sheet 9, Line 41, shows Ellen Mary CLARK was age 31, birthplace in Ireland and probably came to America about the time of the Irish Potato Famine or shortly after her birth. From the birth certificate of her daughter, Mary Veronica MONSEES, certificate no. 417555, Municipal Archives of New York City, it was learned her full name was Ellen Mary CLARK, and she was age 36 years in 1885, place of birth: Ireland. These two records indicate she was born about 1849 in Ireland. From her death certificate, register no. 4342, obtained from the Dept. of Health for the City of New York, the following has been learned about Ellen Mary (CLARK) MONSEES: her birthdate was given as 31 Oct 1854 in the United States, which does not agree with the earlier information of her birthplace in Ireland, but the information would have been provided by someone other than Ellen MONSEES, and was probably in error except maybe for the day and month of birth; she died on 4 Jul 1928 in Queens Borough, New York, which agrees with what her grand-daughter said was her date of death, namely that Evelyn V. COLE was 16 years old at the time of her grandmother's death, or about 1928. She was interred on 7 Jul 1928 in St. John's Cemetery, Middle Village, New York. Her death certificate also revealed that her father’s name was John CLARK, and her mother’s name was Mary BRADY, both born in Ireland. She probably married John Henry MONSEES, Jr. about 1870, but it is unknown where they were married. They had a large family but the exact number of their children is unknown. Evelyn V. COLE once said her mother, Mary Veronica MONSEES, was one of a family of 13 or 16, but we only have the names of 11. At least two children died young, because the birth certificate for Mary Veronica MONSEES says she was their 9th child, but at the time of her birth, only 7 children were still living. Ellen MONSEES is buried with 6 other members of her family, namely her sons:  Clarence B., Harry MONSEES, George MONSEES and his wife, Annie M. MONSEES, and possibly a previously unknown daughter, Madeline MONSEES (age 81 years when she died in 1973), and Robert Brennan (age 17 in 1940; his relationship to Ellen M. Monsees is unknown, but he was probably a grandson). Source:  Letter from Catholic Cemeteries, Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York to Bonnie Bunce dated 14 Jul 1992. An email from Joe Weber identified Robert Brennan as the grandson of Edward Francis Monsees, by his daughter Amy (Monsees) Brennan, who was b. abt. 1902

There is a copy of an obituary for Ellen Mary (Clark) Monsees online, which was published in the Brooklyn Standard Union newspaper. It lists the names of only 6 of her children, who were possibly the only ones still alive when she died, namely, “Harry, Edward, George, Arthur, Vera and Clarence.” “Vera” is likely a misspelling or misunderstood name for my grand­mother, Mary Veronica (MONSEES) COLE. According to Edward Ryan, Jr., another grandchild of Charles C. and Mary Veronica (Monsees) Cole, “Vera” was our grandmother’s nickname, and curiously it appears on her Pennsylvania death certificate. It also states that she was to be buried in Calvary Cemetery, which is an error, since her remains were interred in St. John's Cemetery in Middle Village, New York, according to both her death certificate and a letter from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn.

According to an email from Joe Weber, dated 15 Nov 2005, who is another descendant of John Henry and Ellen Mary (Clark) Monsees, Ellen "was a member of the [Roman] Catholic Third Order of St. Francis of Assisi and was actually buried in the brown Franciscan Habit.”

Additionally, the previously unknown individuals buried with Ellen Mary (Clark) Monsees are:  (1) Robert Brennan, who died of rheumatic fever at age 17, was her g.grandson, and grandson of her son Edward and his wife, Margaret McCafferty, by their daughter Amy (Monsees) Brennan. (2) Madeline (_____) Monsees was not Ellen’s daughter, as speculated earlier, but was the wife of Clarence Monsees, whom he married late in life, apparently only about a year before he died.

Also, as stated in the Bunce Genealogy and History, Edward Francis Monsees did disappear, abandoning his wife in the 1920s, but was known to have died in Florida in the late 1950s. He had two known daughters, Amy (Monsees) Brennan and Genevieve, the mother of Joe Weber.

There is still some question about exactly how many children John Henry and Ellen Mary (Clark) Monsees had. I have a vague recollection that my mother once stated her mother was one of 13 or 16 children. Joe Weber says that they had twin boys born in 1900, named John and Henry, when Ellen was 50 years old, but the boys died within a few days and are buried with their father in Calvary Cemetery. This brings the total to about 14 children, I think, but two are still unknown, as the birth certificate for my grandmother says she was their 9th child, but that only 7 were still alive in 1885. It is unknown if one or more of those on the 1880 census died or if there were others born after June, 1880, who died before 1885. Joe stated that baptismal records are available for the children.

The name of George MONSEES does not appear on the 1880 census with his parents. He appears to have been buried at St. John Cemetery along with his supposed wife, Annie (LOFTUS) MONSEES, in the same plot as his mother. George was age 78 when he died, and was interred on 28 Nov 1958, so it appears he was born later in the year of 1880, after the census was taken in January.

Harry MONSEES did not appear on the 1880 census record for his parents' household. There was another son named Henry E. MONSEES, age 6, who does appear on the census. Harry was another of John H. and Ellen M. (CLARK) MONSEES' children who was buried with his mother at St. John Cemetery. The letter from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn stated Harry MONSEES died at age 47, and was interred in a grave on 28 Oct 1930, so it would appear he was born about 1883.

There is a death certificate for John H. MONSEES who died at 253 W. Houston St., New York City on 20 Mar 1909; his remains were interred 22 Mar 1908, at the Calvary Cemetery in Queens, New York. The certificate states he was a native of New York City, and his father was John Henry MONSEES, a native of Hanover, Germany; his mother was Imogene McCLELLAND, a native of Scotland. The death certificate states John H. MONSEES died of tuberculosis at age 55, but that age must be wrong as the two earlier public records for him show he would have been about 60 years of age in 1909; i.e., the 1880 census record for his household shows he was age 31, and the birth certificate for his 9th child, Mary Veronica MONSEES, in January, 1885 says he was 36. Both these records were created when he was alive, and would indicate a birthdate of about 1849. Source: Certificate and Record of Death, No. 8750, signed by Dr. George L. Stivers of New York City on 21 Mar 1909. Also the 1880 census shows a brother named David D. MONSEES, age 20, was living in the household of John MONSEES, so he had at least one sibling. When requesting a death certificate for John MONSEES from New York City, the year 1909 was asked to be searched, because Evelyn V. (COLE) ULLBERG BUNCE CORBITT had once stated that her grandmother, Ellen Mary (CLARK) MONSEES, had been a widow for 19 years prior to her death in 1928. This death certificate appears to have been the only one filed in New York City for a man named John MONSEES who died in the year 1909, since the Department of Health sent only the one record. Also the residence address given for John Henry MONSEES at the time of his death is identical to the one given on the marriage certificate for his daughter, Mary Veronica MONSEES, dated three years later in May, 1912, namely, 253 West Houston St., New York City.

Apparently John H. MONSEES, Jr. followed several lines of work during his life, as the birth certificate for his daughter, Mary Veronica MONSEES, stated his occupation was a porter, and his death certificate stated he worked as a furrier.

Based on a 2002 email from David Hitchcock, John H. Monsees, Jr. may have had another sibling besides David D.  since David Hitchcock stated his great grandmother was Clara Bella Monsees. He had obtained a copy of his g.grandparents' 1873 Manhattan marriage certificate to John Sherwood, and he stated further:

On the certificate are the reference to Clara’s age on her next birthday as 17 and to her parents as John Monsees and Ima Jean McClellan. I conjecture, therefore, that she was born either in 1856 or 1857, and may have been your great-grandfather, John Monsees Jr.’s (born around 1848?), younger sister, also guessing that the “Ima Jean” listed on the certificate was the same person as Imogen; Americans seem to struggle with the spelling of foreign names! My mother, who never knew her maternal grandmother, has told me that the Monsees family supposedly owned a butcher shop, which I haven't substantiated yet, although there is a Herman Monsees listed in the Brooklyn directory I have attached a reference to below (Brooklyn is where my mother grew up) as a butcher. . . . Also my mother, when apprised of your post and our possible family connection, was surprised, as she had never heard that Clara came from a large family. Then again her mother’s family and father's family seemed to have some rift going on, so my mother never heard much about the Monsees or the Sherwoods for that matter. My maternal grandfather died when my mother, the youngest and only surviving member of her nuclear family, was only twelve, so the task ahead of me is pretty challenging.

Another emailed message from David Hitchcock dated May, 2004, contained information about the family of John Henry and Imogene (Jean J.) (McClelland) Monsees. In the 1870 census, the following record appears:

John H. Monsees, Male, Color: W, age 50, occupation: sugar barter, born: Hannover [b.ca. 1820]

Jean J. Monsees, Female, Color: W, age 45, occupation: keeping house, born: Ireland (perhaps Northern Ireland?) [b.ca. 1825]

Charlotte Monsees, F, W, age 15, occupation: At Home [b.ca. 1855]

Clara B. Monsees, F, W, age 12 [b.ca. 1858]
Amelia Monsees, F, W, age 11 [b.ca. 1859]
David E. Monsees, M, W, age 9 [b.ca. 1861]
Eliza F. Monsees, F, W, age 7 [b.ca. 1863]
Melvina Monsees, F, W, age 5 [b.ca. 1865]

Another email message from David Hitchcock of 26 May 2004 reported on a record he found of the marriage of Johann (“Johann” is the German version of “John”) Monsees and Anna Jane McLeam, which seems a probable match to our g.g.grandparents, whose record was found on the 1870 census; however, since there are naturalization records of 9 men named John or Johann Monsees prior to 1920, it is possible one of these men was the spouse in the following marriage record. Since Monsees is such a rare name (ranked 46,204th most common surname in the US in 1990 by the U.S. Census Bureau), and the date of this marriage is only about 3 years prior to the birth of my g.grandfather, I agreed with David that this seems likely to be their marriage record, even though the date of birth given for Johann was 4 years earlier than that given on the census record. Sometimes information on the census was gotten from a child in the house, or even a neighbor, if the family was not at home, when the census taker called.

Here’s a promising find from the New York City Lutheran Church Record database (1834-1854). There is a record of a Johann Monsees, born in “Huettenbusch, Amt, Ottersberg, Hannover” in 1816 and married 22 Aug 1846 to "Anna Jane McLeam," born in Armegh, Ireland. . . .  [T]his sure sounds like a lead to me, especially given the constant alteration of names to conform to American English norms.

In an email from David Hitchcock, dated 5 July, 2007, he sent a translation of the German Lutheran Church marriage record he had found earlier, which he thought was that of our g.g.grandfather:

Married August 22, 1846
Johann Monsees; bachelor; born Huettenbosch district Ottersberg; today 30 years old; sugar refiner, — with virgin Anna Jane McLeam, born Armegh, Ireland 21 year of age; witnesses Gebert Monsees 14. Strince. Luetje Ordeegs and wife 28. Jabert Street. Maria A Walsh, 17. Rosevelt

Previously, we had speculated that "Anna Jean McLeam" may have been a misspelled recording of the name of Imogene McClelland, since the pronunciation of “Imogene” sounds like "Anna Jean."

Additionally, on the defunct website at Monsees Yahoo Groups mailing list, a member posted a message in August, 2006, that

“You may be happy to know that Bernd Salewski has recently published his family genealogy on the Die Maus Website—for the “Teufelsmoor” region. Bernd’s research includes the numbers of the family farms and can be found on the following site: genealogienetz.de.

Herb Grotheer’s family genealogy website utilized Bernd’s research, and explains how the parishes, church records, farms were organized — it requires a little digging to get the “full picture” — but you can get to it from this link:  Grotheer Family Genealogy

Basically, the genealogical records are taken from church records of baptisms, burial and marriage. The information was cross-referenced with land records specifying the ownership and property inheritance of the numbered family farms in the region. It makes the research quite orderly. Prior to the dates the various churches began recording baptism, marriage and burials, records are taken exclusively from the land records.

Yet, when I checked the first site and found numerous records for men named “Johann Hinrich Monsees,” none seem to have been born around 1813 (aged 78 at time of death in 1891) or 1816 (age in 1846 when married).  On the other hand, if we take the age of 50 years of our g.g.grandfather John Monsees on the 1870 census, his date of birth would have been about 1820.  There is a record on this website for Johann Hinrich Monsees, born 20 Nov 1821, in H�ttenbusch, son of Hinrich and Anne Alheit (Schriever) Monsees.  The entry for this particular Johann Monsees says that no children or wife were found for him, but no date of death was provided either, which could be the case had he immigrated from Germany to America, and died in America.  More information needs to be found before we can definitively state that this son of Hinich Monsees is the same man as our g.g.grandfather.

The index on the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System had no record for John, Henry, or John H. Monsees as having been a soldier in the American Civil War, either from the state of New York or from the state of New Jersey.

Additionally, on 24 Oct 2004, David wrote me:

But the latest significant addition, it appears, regards the Monsees daughter Eliza who shows up on the 1870 census among the family members (in order, John H., “Jane J.,” Charlotte, Clara B., Amelia, David E., Eliza H., and Melvina. Between the two of us, we already knew something about the fates of Clara B., David E., and Melvina. Eliza is 7 years old on the 1870 census. On the same page of the 1900 census listing for my grandfather James Sherwood, his sister Clara, and mother Clara, immediately above them is the listing for the family of James Shepard (age 39), wife Eliza (37), daughters Charlotte and Ethel (I forgot to transcribe their ages, but I think they were very young). Right after the daughters you find the listing for “Ammie Monsees,” age 76, born in May of 1824, and listed as mother-in-law. The year of birth actually looks more like 1874, but the transcrip­tion obviously is a mistake, if that’s the case. . . . More later. David

A letter dated June 24, 2005, from the Lutheran All Faiths Cemetery in Middle Village, New York to David Hitchcock had the following information on the graves purchased by Theodore Heinroth, who was the husband of Charlotte (MONSEES) HEINROTH, a sister of Clara Bella (MONSEES) SHERWOOD and John Henry MONSEES, Jr.:

“Below is a list of interments in Lot 1910 Map 2, registered owner, Theodore Heinroth, deed dated August 3, 1881.

“CHARLOTTE HEIMROTH, age 26 years 1 month 7 days, place of death 79 2nd Avenue, NY, interred July 29, 1881. [dau. of John Henry, and Imogene (McCLELLAND) MONSEES; first wife of Theodore Heinroth, married 9 Jan 1873, Manhattan, New York; only one son, Charles HEINROTH, b. abt. 1874 lived to adulthood, and became a concert pianist in Pittsburgh, Pa.]

“FREDDIE HEIMROTH, age 4 years 5 months, place of death 328 East 16 Street, NY, interred April 5, 1881. Disinterred to above lot November 8, 1881 from Lot 3710 Map 4. [son of Theodore & Charlotte]

“THEODORE HEINROTH, age 2 years 5 months, place of death 45 President Street, NY, interred April 5, 1881. Disinterred to above lot November 8, 1881 from Lot 3710 Map 4. [son of Theodore & Charlotte]

“DANIEL HEINROTH, age 4 years 3 months, place of death 313 East 13 Street, NY, interred March 13, 1885. [son of Theodore & Charlotte]

“CARL HENSEL, age 56 years, place of death 423 East 58 Street, NY, interred April 19, 1887. [Relationship unknown, possibly father of Theodore's second wife]

“JOHN MONSEES, age 78 years, place of death 68 3rd Street, NY, interred August 13, 1891. [Likely father of Charlotte, Clara Bella, and John Jr. as well as 4 other known children, and spouse of Imogene (McCLELLAND) MONSEES]

“IMOGENE MONSEES, age 89 years, place of death 862 71 Street, Brooklyn, NY, interred June 5, 1915. [Matches information on death certificate; she died on 2 Jun 1915, and her parents’ names from the death certificate were Alexander McCLELLAND and Margaret MacMURRY.]

“MARIE B. GLUCKMAN, age 6 months 3 days, place of death 633 74 Street, Brooklyn, NY, interred April 7, 1918. [relationship to others unknown at this time July, 2005]

“THEODORE HEINROTH, age 79 years, place of death 523 62 Street, Brooklyn, NY, interred April 11, 1924. [owner of cemetery plot, was employed as a jeweler per 1880 NYC census]

“MARY P. HEINROTH, age 79 years 9 months 2 days, place of death 523 62 Street, Brooklyn, NY, interred January 2, 1939. [Theodore Heinroth’s second wife; maiden name was Besold, but may have been her second marriage, also; married ca. 1886]

“CHARLES STUDEBAKER, age 69 years 4 months, place of death 442 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, interred December 8, 1945. [relationship to others unknown at this time July, 2005; believe a more recent email from someone else stated the Studebakers were related to the second wife of Theodore HEINROTH]

“OLGA M. STUDEBAKER, age 89 years, place of death Kings County Hospital, Brooklyn, NY, interred February 16, 1965. [relationship to others unknown at this time July, 2005]

“The variation in the spelling of the family name is taken from original book records. No other information is available.”

Further, David wrote me recently on 21 Nov 2007, that he had found an obituary for Imogene (McClellan) Monsees on p. 9, of the New York Times, dated Sat., June 5, 1915 as follows:

A Very Happy Thanksgiving to you. I have devoted next to no time to genealogy of late, … but with a brief few minutes to indulge my hobby, I discovered that there is a record from the New York Times of June 5, 1915 that goes as follows:

Mrs. IMOGENE MONSEES, widow of John Henry Monsees, formerly a sugar refiner of South Brooklyn, is dead at the home of her daughter, 862 Seventy-first Street, Bay Ridge.  Mrs. Monsees was a native of Ireland and a daughter of the late Captain Alexander McClellan, an officer of the British Army.

It is notable in its apparent confirmation of data previously extracted from two other sources (the All Faiths Lutheran cemetery one and the certificate that I had previously found through the LDS).

The results of a search for the family of John Henry Monsees, Jr. on the 1870 census follows, which appears to show that he was probably newly married and sharing an apartment with his wife's two older brothers and their wives:

Francis Clark, M, W, age 24, [b.ca. 1846] occupation: seaman
Mary Clark, F, W, age 5 (?), [b.ca. 1865] occupation: keeping house
John Monsees, M, W, age 22, [b.ca. 1848] occupation: cooper
Ellen Monsees, F, W, age 21, [b.ca. 1849] keeping house
Peter Clark, M, W, age 27, [b.ca. 1843] occupation: laborer
Anna Clark, F, W, age 25, [b.ca. 1845] occupation: keeping house

Why John H. Monsees, Jr. was living with his wife’s family is somewhat of a mystery, unless they were unable to afford a home of their own when they first started married life, and his parents did not have room for them.  Also I speculated that assuming the theory about the Monsees family being French Huguenots or French Protestants is correct, then in order to marry Ellen Mary Clark, John H. Monsees, Jr. may have had to convert to Catholicism.  As a consequence, his Protestant father may not have approved either of the religious conver­sion or his marriage, and “threw his son out of the house,” but since John had at least 6 siblings, it seems more likely that his parents had no room for them.

As for the occupation listed for John H. Monsees, Jr., in 1870, The Merriam-Webster Dictionary states that a cooper is “one who makes or repairs barrels or casks.”

Lastly, there appears to be a link from the Monsees surname to the surname “Schmonsees,” but I don’t exactly know how they are related. The “Monsees” surname does not appear in any book that I have checked on the interpretation of German surnames, and I have concluded that perhaps it was changed from some earlier version. Some other Monsees researchers were told by family members that the family was of French Huguenot (Protestant) origin, but there seems to be no hard proof for that assertion, just a family tradition. One researcher (Joe Weber) did say that not too long ago he had found a number of families in Nice, France with the surname of Monsees.

The name of Natalie MONSEES did not appear on the 1880 census record for the family of John and Ellen MONSEES. She may have been one of their 2 children who had died, perhaps before 1880, who were referenced on the 1885 birth certificate of Mary V. MONSEES. The following death record was found on an index to New York City deaths 1891-1919 on the website for the Italian Genealogical Group, which may refer to this child of my g.grandparents:

The name of William J. MONSEES, a son, age 4, appears on the 1880 New York City census record for the family of John and Ellen (CLARK) MONSEES on 275 Hudson St., giving him an approximate date of birth of 1876. He may have been the son mentioned in this genealogy as “Willie.” Another entry on the website for the Italian Genealogical Group index to deaths in New York City from 1891 to 1919 is the following entry:

Decedent	Age at Death	Date of Death	Certificate No.	Borough	Soundex Code
Monsees, Wm. J.	30 y	Apr. 7, 1906	11667	Manhattan	M522

The name of Joshua F. NORRIS is on the 1850 census for Barrington, Yates Co., New York, 258th family enumerated, where it gave his age as 44 years in 1850, birthplace, Maryland, and a carpenter by trade.  Additionally S.C. Cleveland’s History & Directory of Yates Co., New York states on pp. 666-67 that Joshua F. NORRIS, born 1808, was the youngest of the five children of Eliphalet and Mary (HATHAWAY) NORRIS.

According to the New York State Adjutant General Records: “Norris, Joshua F. age 42, enlisted 10 Feb 1862, Dundee, private, Co. I 103rd Infantry; was discharged for disability 26 May 1862 at New Berne, N.C.”  Joshua F. NORRIS is buried in a cemetery near Dundee, Yates Co., NY, where his gravestone reads:  “Joshua F. NORRIS, 1877 Oct 28, d. age 68, Civil War Co. I, 103d N.Y.”

The book, Genealogical Gleanings Abstracted from the “Yates County Chronicle” Penn Yan, New York May 1856 to October 1867 by Dianne Stenzel, © 1992, published by Heritage Books, Inc. says on pg. 181, paragraph 1717: “William Nelson NORRIS, son of Joshua and Samantha NORRIS of Barrington, Yates Co., New York died 22 Jul 1863 in a hospital at Gettys­burg, Pa., from the effects of the wounds he received in battle.” Since he was age 14 in 1850 according to the census for Barrington, Yates Co., N.Y., the 258th family on the census in the household headed by his father, Joshua F. NORRIS, he died at about age 27.

The following records on William N. Norris were obtained from Betty Auten who is compiling a comprehensive computer database for the approximately 250,000 soldiers who served in the Civil War from New York state. Betty Auten wrote: “The material for William Nelson Norris came from 3 sources:

“Norris, William N., private, Co. C 44th Inf., wounded in the chest and killed 2 Jul 1863 Gettysburg, buried on M. Fissel farm, in the woods, age 27, from Barrington.”  Source:  book, These Honored Dead: the Union Casualties at Gettysburg by John W. Busey, 1st ed., published by Longstreet House, Highstown, NJ, 1988.

“12 William N. Norris, age 28, s 9/1863 44 reg. private, wounded Gettysburg died July or August 22, 1863, same burial, same enlisted at Barrington." Source:  1865 census for Barrington, Yates Co., New York.

“Norris, William N., age 27, enlisted 5 Sep 1862 Barrington, private Co. C 44th Infantry, wounded 2 Jul 1863, died of wounds 22 Jul 1863 at Gettysburg." Source: Adjutant General Reports.”

Semantha (KRESS) NORRIS was residing at Barrington, Yates Co., New York in January, 1869, as shown in the probate record for her father, John Jay KRESS. On the 1850 census for Barrington, Yates Co., New York, Samantha NORRIS was recorded as being 24 years old, but this must be an error, since her oldest son was 14 years of age. This was in the record for the 258th family enumerated for the census. Also on p. 1104 of S. C. Cleveland’s History and Directory of Yates Co., New York, the name of Samantha NORRIS appeared on a list of members of the First Christian Society of Starkey and Barrington. This church was located first at Harpending's Corners, then relocated to Dundee.

On the probate record for her father, John Jay KRESS, dated January 1869, the address given for Jane O’BRIEN was Fall River, Columbia Co., Wisconsin. Recently (June, 2001), I learned John O’Brien is buried in the Fall River cemetery with the dates his gravestone given as 5 Jan 1812 and 2 Nov 1856. Jane (KRESS) O'BRIEN is also buried there with a date of death 19 Aug 1884 on her gravestone, birth not given. Their son Myron D. O’BRIEN is also buried in the same cemetery date of death 19 Nov 1883, age 46. Their daughter Ida died 26 Apr 1862, at the tender age of 6y, 11m and 16d. Their son Horace S. O'BRIEN is buried there also with dates 1841-1919 on his gravestone and his wife Angelia FIERO, 1842-1932, is also buried there. Per an email from a resident of Fall River, there are 262 descendants of John and Jane (KRESS) O’BRIEN, which includes names of spouses as well as their direct line.

Mary Jane WILKINS was NOT the wife of Ranson “Rance” PRATT as was stated on p. 47 of this genealogy, but rather it was her sister, Catharine WILKINS, who married Rance PRATT. For supporting evidence see the entry for Catharine (WILKINS) PRATT.

Mary Jane WILKINS’ date of birth in this genealogy was extrapolated from her age of 4 at the time of the 1850 census of Starkey, Yates Co., New York, where the names of her and her sister appeared on the record of the family of John Jay KRESS, the 211th family enumerated in the census. I believe she probably either never married or died as a young adult.

The woman “Mary Jane OVENSHIRE,” listed as an heir to the estate of John Jay KRESS in 1869, was probably Mary Jane REED, daughter of Elisha and Catharine (KRESS) REED of Barrington, who had married Francis A. OVENSHIRE of Starkey, at Dundee, Yates Co., New York on 4 Jul 1863, and had one son, Bert A. OVENSHIRE. According to an obituary record in the Frank Swann Collection at the Yates County Historical Society, Mary Jane REED was born 17 Sep 1846 at Milo, and died 29 Mar 1936 at age 90. Another obit stated her husband, Frank OVENSHIRE died at his home in Starkey Corners at age 81 on 24 Oct 1924 (born 15 Oct 1843), and had been a carriage maker by trade. Mrs. Mary J. OVENSHIRE was survived by two granddaughters, Mrs. Delores STEBBINS of Eaton and Mrs. Fay OVENSHIRE of Syracuse. She was buried in the Hillside Cemetery at Dundee, New York next to her son, Bert A. OVENSHIRE, 1865-1932.

Martha (LONSINGER) PARDEE passed away at age 96 on 18 Aug 1994. Her birthdate is wrong in this genealogy; it should read 14 Sep 1897. It was her husband, William H. PARDEE, who was born 1 Aug 1898. Source: Martha and William PARDEE’s daughter.

The book, Genealogical Gleanings Abstracted from the “Yates County Chronicle,” states on p. 110, paragraph 1059:

“Mrs. Catharine WILKINS PRATT died 25 Aug 1860 at the home of Dr. E. HUSON in Tescumseh, Kansas. She was the wife of Ranson PRATT, and daughter of Isaac WILKINS and grand-daughter of John J. KRESS of Starkey, New York." (Emphasis added.)

Her approximate birthdate of 1837 in this genealogy was taken from her age of 13 in the 1850 census where her name ap­peared on the record for the household of her grandfather, John Jay KRESS of Starkey, New York, 211th family enumer­ated on the census. This information from the census con­firmed the statement in Cleveland’s History and Directory of Yates County, New York, p. 920, that Mr. and Mrs. John J. KRESS had raised 13 children to adulthood as well as 2 of their grandchildren.

On p. 933 of S.C. Cleveland’s History and Directory of Yates County, New York, it says that the name of RAPLEE was for­merly spelled ROBLYER, but was changed by Judge Nehemiah RAPLEE to “its present orthography and by common consent that is now the family name. It was of French origin.” Sarah RAPLEE, born about 1842, was a daughter of Arnold RAPLEE and his wife, Rebecca DAINS, and a grand-daughter of Ezra and Amarillis (DAINS) RAPLEE. See pp. 920, 937-38 of Cleveland’s History and Directory of Yates Co., New York. According to an email from another Kress researcher, she died in 1871.

This record of Catharine WILKINS' marriage to Elisha REED is wrong. See notes for Catherine (WILKINS) PRATT and for Mary Jane (REED) OVENSHIRE. L. R. and V.E. Bunce probably confused Catherine WILKINS with her aunt, Catherine KRESS, who married Elisha REED.

The birthdate given for Melissa (KRESS) RANDOLPH is based on her age of 12 years on the 1850 Starkey, Yates Co., New York census, 210th family enumerated.

On the probate record for John J. KRESS dated January, 1869, the address given for John REED was Milford, Oakland County, Michigan. It is unknown what source L.R. Bunce used for stating John REED was a son of Wallace REED and Catherine Alsader, but he was an heir of the estate of John Jay KRESS and probably a grandson of Elisha and Catherine (KRESS) REED.

On the probate record for John J. KRESS dated January, 1869, the address given for William W. REED was Argentine, Genesee County, Michigan. It is unknown what source L.R. Bunce used for stating William W. REED was a son of Wallace REED and Catherine Alsader, but he was an heir to the estate of John Jay KRESS and was probably a grandson of Elisha and Catharine (KRESS) REED.

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