In the comments section of that blog post one of my friends and faithful readers, who also happens to be a very smart librarian, shared with me a link for a Jones Cemetery and asked if these were my Jones folks. They were!
Many of the names in the cemetery are familiar. Duckett and Bostick stand out. Probably anyone from Asheville, North Carolina has a connection. However, what stood out on that page was a grave marker transcription for:
JONES, Harriet Elizabeth 8 Oct 1859 - 18 Aug 1861
dau of R. M. and Sarah Neilson Jones note: no longer found
This entry got me excited because R. M. and Sarah are my great-great-great grandparents. Harriet was a child I did not know of! My great-great grandfather, Frank Wiley Jones, had another sister! I went to enter her name in my files and I stopped...
She was born on the same day as my great-great grandfather. He was a twin.
The only evidence I had that Harriet even existed came from the Jones Cemetery transcription web page. I've yet to find them in the 1860 census. I'm wondering if they were en route from North Carolina to Texas then.
The only reason I now know about it is because I blogged about my Jones line and someone took the time to comment and share what she knew.
This is why all genealogists should blog. We are not islands. So many other folks out there have information to share. You don't have to be an expert writer. Just get your surnames out there. You'll be surprised at what you find...or who finds you.
[Edit, January 15, 2010: I have found further information that refutes the birth date of Harriet. It seems someone transcribed her brother Franklin's birth date in place of Harriet's. She is Franklin's older sister, having been born in 1856. --Amy]
That's great, Amy!
ReplyDelete:) I've got a little research problem I will ask for help on sometime (when I have a little time) as payback!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Amy! By the way, did you know that Mississippi has a Jones County? There are many, many, Jones families in MS, with some in the counties that I write about. Apparently, many of these family members from NC stopped off in MS and never left.
ReplyDeleteAmy,
ReplyDeleteFantastic! Congratulations on finding your Joneses. First off, I absolutely love findagrave.com – it's becoming a place to find good information as much as a place to share.
Secondly, your story is a testament to the power of blogging! I think you have helped me write some promotional pieces for an upcoming program at the California Genealogical Society!
OK, Amy, I can't find a direct connection, but I don't have all my Jones' siblings from Buncombe Co., NC. I do have a Wiley W. who was born about 1826 to George Walker Jones and his wife, also a Jones--Nancy Jones, daughter of Joshua Jones and Ellender Medley. All these folks were in Buncombe Co. and most of their descendants ended up in Texas via Cocke County (and others) Tennessee.
ReplyDeleteSo, I'm just putting this out there--as a fellow librarian and a 6th generation Texan--I just think we should keep up with our Jones in case there's a connection.
Also, I'm doing a presentation entitled "Blogs: Another Genealogical Resource" and I'd love to have my very own example. Second best will be using yours--especially with a name like Jones. :-) I'll ask permission when it gets closer.
I love blogging! You just showed us how important it is to share our information with others. Congratulations on finding a lost ancestor. :-)
ReplyDeleteYou said it - it's amazing how much you can learn through a blog!
ReplyDeleteSynchronicity -- I just posted my own testimonial to why genealogists should blog. Isn't it a wonderful feeling?
ReplyDeleteAmy,
ReplyDeleteHello from a fellow TEXAN. Just found and read you blog about keeping up with the Jones'. Tracing a Jones line is frustrating, especially when all the older generations have passed on. But, my unique problem is that BOTH my grandmothers maiden names were JONES!
And from different parts of TEXAS. Added to that the fact that both sides of my parents families lived in East TEXAS and I was born and raised in Lubbock, TEXAS in the panhandle, and never had a lot of contact with them to listen and pick up on little things families let slip when they are talking about themselves, I've had to dig and depend a lot on the census.
I've been doing genealogy about two years, self taught, so I'm really excited when I can connect with experienced researchers to observe and learn from. Sorry to have run off at the "mouth", just wanted to say Hi and I'll be following your blog.