Here are a few tidbits about my branch of the family and their moves west away from Ohio to Washington and Alaska. My great grandmother was Emma Rebecca Handley. She was one of 12 children of James H Handley (1826-1913) and his wife Jane Slagle (1831-1891). James was the eldest son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Barger) Handley. James and Jane lived in Gallia, Lawrence, and Jackson Co in Ohio ending up in Wellston in the late 1890s, early 1900s. James was a coal miner.

Their children were:

1. Henry Thomas (1853-1868) died young in Decatur, Lawrence Co, OH

2. Ann Eliza (1855-1946) married John W Campbell and had 12 children. As far as I know they stayed in Jackson Co, OH until John's death in 1915. She was living in Cambridge, Guernsey Co, OH at the time of her death.

3. Mary E (b 1857) don't know what happened to her except that she married Jesse Arnold

4. Louis (b 1859, died young I think)

5. Albert M (b 1863) m Flora J Oney. The had 11 children. He was a teamster in 1900 and I think they stayed in Ohio.

6. Samuel B (1865-1942) m Jane M Wells. He went to Alaska in the Gold Rush in the late 1890s, leaving his wife in Wellston, OH with their 3 children. He was still in Alaska in 1910, living in his own home on Ester Creek near Fairbanks, AK working as a teamster. None of his immediate family was living with him, although his nephew Homer was living with him and another nephew, Oscar Kavaney lived nearby. By 1920, he had moved to Hazelwood in King Co, WA where he lived with his wife and children until his death.

7. Emma Rebecca (1867-1954) m Michael Kavaney, whose family had immigrated from Ireland ~1850. Michael was a coal miner. He died in 1907, probably of black lung disease in Wellston leaving his widow and 4 children: Oscar Beasley, Henry (Harry) Thomas, Myrtle Helen (my grandmother), and Curtis. Within a few years the family scattered - - Oscar went to Alaska, working in Berry's gold mines until the 1920s when he moved to the Bellingham area where he lived with his mother and step father until his death). Harry worked in the Seattle area for a while as a teamster, then as a farm hand living with his sister and her husband in the CA central valley and then I lost track of him. Neither he or Oscar married or had children. Curtis went to sea as a cabin boy - - the ships captain changed his name to James Cavannaugh stating that Curtis Cavaney was "no fit name for a sailor". After he retired from the sea, he spent the last 20 years of his life in Port Angeles, WA with his wife Anna. They had no children. Myrtle accompanied her aunt to AK by stage, train, ship, & river boat when she was 17. After spending at least a few months in AK, Yukon, and then a longer time in No Vancouver Island (with Nora Handley), she married Ralph Harris who had been partner in her uncle's teamster business in the creeks near Fairbanks. They settled in Selma, CA on a farm where she had her son, Don. After a few years, Ralph left her to return to Alaska remaining there until his death in 1945. Ralph's whole family came to Alaska during the gold rush living briefly in Nome and then primarily in Fairbanks. One of his sisters (Roma) married Clarence Berry's brother inheriting his part of one of Berry's claims on Ester Creek.. Emma joined her sister Norah in North Vancouver Island where she met Harmon Markham Marriott. After her second marriage, she and Harmon moved to the small town of Lookout (now called Alger) in Skagit Co south of Bellingham. Harmon bought a lot of property some of which his brothers and their sons farmed. He was primarily a logging operator, however. After Harmon's death ( he was run over by a bulldozer carrying a load of logs) Emma remained in Bellingham until her death in 1954. I met several relatives of Harmon's when I visited Alger last summer and they weren't too fond of Emma - - said she was a little too full of herself and her possessions.

8. Serena Jane (Rena, 1870-aft 1955) m Arch L. Moore. As far as I know, they had no children and lived in Seattle.

9. Flora H Handley (b 1872, twin of Nora, died after 1930) , Albert Buscher. from Winetka, IL. They were partners with Ralph Harris in a freighting business on Ester Creek and ran a stage line from Ester Creek to the rail line running from Fairbanks. He worked as gold miner and teamster until they left Alaska for Washington where he and his brother worked as laborers in the logging industry. After his wife's death in Berkeley, Ca he returned to his family in IL. They had no children. He was one of my favorite relatives when I was a kid.

10. Nora H Handley (1872-aft 1950) m George Morley from Maine. He first joined the gold rush as a stampeder up the Chilkoot Pass and down Lake Bennett by boat. I don't think that Norah accompanied him to Alaska, but lived on North Vancouver Island. By 1910 he was running a gold mine in Alaska (near Fairbanks in Ester Ciry) while his wife remained in Seattle, WA. He lived next door to his sister-in- law, Flora and Bert Busscher in Fairbanks. In the 1920s they lived in Webster, King Co in WA (Maple Valley). He worked in the logging industry along with the other Handley men in the area. In the 1930s and 40s, he ran a cafe in San Francisco with his wife. They had no children.

11. William C (b 1876) married and had a son Harry Welch. He remained in Wellston, working as a merchant.

12. Henry (b 1879) I don't know what happened to him.