William had inherited this land as William A 'Hoffman', but he used the 'Huffman' name when selling it. See the Sept 13 post for more discussion about the spelling of names.
We don't know why he sold the land. As part of the requirements of his inheritance, he owed $700.00 to his siblings and their descendants. This might have been a factor. After selling the land his family moved to Texas, so they may have just wanted to move. (This family only stayed in Texas a couple of years, then moved to Missouri, and at least three of the children moved to the Seattle, Washington area in about 1900. I hope to detail how/what is known about this family in a future post.)
Whatever the reason, the land was sold in the same year as his Mother died, 1881. (His Father had died in 1871). The Deed of is dated July 29, and was filed in the courthouse on July 30, 1881.
William A. Huffman
To:: Warranty Deed
Michael C. McMahon
This Indenture made the Twenty Ninth day of July in the year of Our Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and Eighty One Between William A Huffman and Ann Maria Huffman, his wife of the County of Greene and State of Illinois party of the first part and Michael C. McMahon in the County of Greene and the State of Illinois party of the second part. Witnesseth that the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of Three Thousand Dollars in hand paid . . .
It looks like William and Ann Maria came out 'OK' on the sale of this land. It had been purchased for $150.00 by his Father in the late 1830s. After paying the obligations to his family, he would have still had $2300.00 from the sale. The Deed does not mention the money that was required to be paid to the other members of the family, but it is obvious that these payments had to be documented in order for Mr. McMahon to gain a clear title to this land.
In the next post I will share the document in which our g-grandfather inherited his portion of this inheritance.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
Section One, Township 9 North, Range 12 West
It has become obvious that I need to back up and tell a little more about the chunk of land that is referenced in the Deed which is detailed in the previous post.
This land is in Greene County, Illinois. It was the location of our Hoffman Clan for much of the 1800s. The reason it is SO important to our family history, is that there are many historical documents related to it. Without these, we would have to guess about the path that was followed by this branch of our family.
William Hoffman purchased this land from the U.S. government as part of a westward expansion program of the early 1800s. The sale price for land in Illinois was $1.25 per acre. He first bought 40 acres, then about 4 years later bought 80 acres. The total purchases being $150.00. These were adjacent properties, both being in the northeast quarter of Section One, T9N, R12W. This land was farmed by three generations of our family: William and Margaret, their children, and several grandchildren. There were distant cousins in the area until just a few years ago, but this land was sold in 1881 to another family.
The drawing is a close up of the shape of this land. One section of land is 1 mile x 1 mile, 640 acres. The Hoffman land was 1/2 mile across the top border and 1/2 mile down the east side.
In the next few posts (and the previous post), I will detail some of the important documents related to this land and our family.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
The Will of William and Margaret Hoffman
These were the grandparents of S. C. Hoffman, my great-grandfather. They lived most of their lives in Greene County, Illinois, on land about 5 miles southeast of Carrollton. William was the son of Benjamin Hoffman, and Margaret's maiden name was Margaret Goforth.
This document is not actually a Will, but it accomplishes most of what a Will would. I will use a series of posts to show why this document is SO important to tracing our Hoffman roots. A copy can still be found in the Court House in Carrollton, Illinois.
Deed Book S S of Greene County Illinois p. 383-384
Filed June 13, 1870
This indenture made the eleventh day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand and eight hundred and seventy, between William Hoffman and Margaret Hoffman his wife, party of the first part, and William A. Hoffman party of the second part.... the following described parcel of land...: the north half of the northeast quarter and the southeast quarter of the northeast quarter of section one township nine north of range twelve west...in Greene County State of Illinois.
William A. Hoffman (the youngest son) was to inherit the land with the condition that he would ...
...pay on the death of the said William and Margaret ... the sum of one hundred dollars to each of the following named persons to wit: John Hoffman, Harriett Witt, Sarah Perry, Eliza Wright, Carolina Gano. Also the like sum of one hundred dollars to the heirs at law of Mary Skeen, and the like sum of one hundred dollars to the heirs of Mariah Jane Davis...
William and Margaret were to retain possession of the land during their 'natural life', after which the son was to proceed with the payments and inherit the land. The reason this is such an important document, is the way in which the son disposed of the land.
After both of the parents died (William in 1871 and Margaret in 1881) William A. Hoffman sold the land to Michael C. McMahon for three thousand dollars. The tricky part was that the 'one hundred dollars' had to be paid to each of his brothers and sisters, or - in 3 cases - their descendants, because theses three children had died before their parents. This had to be done before Mr. McMahon could get a clear title, and these payments had to be documented at the Greene county courthouse.
It took about 7 years for all of this to happen - remember there were no telephones, or email. It was possible to send a letter, but it could only travel as fast a horse!
In my next post I will show what information is in these documents and give an example of one of them.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Hoffman or Huffman
My Aunt Bonnie tells a story about her father, our Grandpa Joe. When he was trying to gather his family (such as, when he was ready to leave church or a party) he would say to his wife, Versie "Come on Huffman" and he would say to Bonnie "Come on little Huffman".
Although our branch of the family used 'Hoffman' throughout the 1900s, it isn't hard to imagine that Joe had heard this phrase as a youngster, because we now know that his father definitely used the 'Huffman' spelling as a child.
Anyone who has spent much time looking at history knows that spelling just was not that important in the past. Most of our family names have several variations. It is important to keep in mind that spelling differences are usually meaningless. For example, Roe and Rowe could be the same family. Beesly and Beasley could be the same family. Bagley and Bagly could be the same family. Many times these differences were just the way the official happened to spell it. The census taker might spell it one way one year, and ten years later use another variation.
Our ancestor, Hans Henrich Hoffman, spelled his name exactly this way when he signed the book in Philadelphia upon his arrival to America in 1734. By 1747, when he began buying land in Virginia, he is known as Henry Huffman, and this is the way it remained the rest of his life.
By the mid 1800s the family's name is again spelled both ways. William bought land in Greene County, Illinois as William Hoffman in the late 1830s, and is listed as such in 1840. The Huffman spelling is again used in the 1850, 1860, and 1870 census. When William and Margaret gave their land to the youngest son, William A. Hoffman, the 'Hoffman' spelling was use, but when William A. sold the land he used the name William A Huffman. The graves of William and Margaret have the Hoffman spelling. So you can see that during the mid 1800s, we may find either spelling at any given time. There is even one census in the early 1800s in which the spelling is 'Hoofman'.
The family in which our S. C. Hoffman grew up, used both Hoffman and Huffman. But after the move to Texas in the late 1800s, the only variation we find is Hoffman.
In this blog we will generally use the modern day spellings for our family names. In cases where a specific historical document is referenced, the variation in the document may be used.
Although our branch of the family used 'Hoffman' throughout the 1900s, it isn't hard to imagine that Joe had heard this phrase as a youngster, because we now know that his father definitely used the 'Huffman' spelling as a child.
Anyone who has spent much time looking at history knows that spelling just was not that important in the past. Most of our family names have several variations. It is important to keep in mind that spelling differences are usually meaningless. For example, Roe and Rowe could be the same family. Beesly and Beasley could be the same family. Bagley and Bagly could be the same family. Many times these differences were just the way the official happened to spell it. The census taker might spell it one way one year, and ten years later use another variation.
Our ancestor, Hans Henrich Hoffman, spelled his name exactly this way when he signed the book in Philadelphia upon his arrival to America in 1734. By 1747, when he began buying land in Virginia, he is known as Henry Huffman, and this is the way it remained the rest of his life.
By the mid 1800s the family's name is again spelled both ways. William bought land in Greene County, Illinois as William Hoffman in the late 1830s, and is listed as such in 1840. The Huffman spelling is again used in the 1850, 1860, and 1870 census. When William and Margaret gave their land to the youngest son, William A. Hoffman, the 'Hoffman' spelling was use, but when William A. sold the land he used the name William A Huffman. The graves of William and Margaret have the Hoffman spelling. So you can see that during the mid 1800s, we may find either spelling at any given time. There is even one census in the early 1800s in which the spelling is 'Hoofman'.
The family in which our S. C. Hoffman grew up, used both Hoffman and Huffman. But after the move to Texas in the late 1800s, the only variation we find is Hoffman.
In this blog we will generally use the modern day spellings for our family names. In cases where a specific historical document is referenced, the variation in the document may be used.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
DNA Testing - The problems with it!
Any time a scientific method is used in evidence (whether in court or in family history or when-ever), it is important to consider its 'weaknesses'. Many researchers are not willing to do this, but I've always felt it is important.
DNA has three major weaknesses.
The first weakness of DNA testing is that all men in a direct relationship have the same DNA. For example, let's assume that several generations from now there is a Norton descendant who thinks he descends from Marc Norton. He could end up with a perfect match with another descendant, but he also would get a perfect match from a descendant of Ned, or Uncle Hub, or even a more distant 'Uncle'. DNA tells us that we are from a particular 'clan', but we still need to have historical documents to show us the exact relationships.
The second weakness of DNA is that once in a while there is a match with a family of a different surname. This could be random chance, since there are billions of people on this planet! More likely is that the two folks share common ancestors before surnames were ever used! Between 500-1000 years ago, surnames were first used by Europeans. It was even more recently than that in some cultures. There are obviously many people who share common ancestors from the pre-surname era, but have totally different surnames. I actually have a fairly good match with a man named Fishback (translated from German as Fish-Creek). His family and ours came from the same area of westcentral Germany at about the same time in the early 1700s. We almost certainly have a common ancestors. There is just no way to say who or when.
The third weakness of DNA is that sometimes there is no match when it seems that there should be. This is usually because of what is called a 'non-paternal' event. Some non-paternal events may have negative connotations. Examples of these would be rape or infidelity. Because we may never know the details of such a situation, or the reasons for such an occurrence, it may be better to leave it alone. Some examples of non-paternal events can be viewed in a much more positive light. Two examples of this would be adoption or step-family situations. If any of these situations are 'known' by future generations, there are no surprises, but as we all know 'family secrets' are very common, sometimes for good reason. It turns out that even if the odds of such an occurrence are low, when several generations are involved, it becomes quite likely that some sort of 'non-paternal' event may occur. If the historical documentation is good enough, even if the DNA does not match, it could be the correct family.
Since the Y-chromosome is what is tested in this type of analysis, every generation in the line of folks tested must be men. There are types of testing in which women can be involved, but because of the surname tradition in America, it is difficult to find a long line of women for whom the 'paper trail' exists. This means that there is no easy way to use DNA to verify our connection to families such as the Beasleys, Roes, Fosters, Woods, Hudsons. All of these lines are important to us, we just have to use traditional family history methods to verify the relationships.
DNA has three major weaknesses.
The first weakness of DNA testing is that all men in a direct relationship have the same DNA. For example, let's assume that several generations from now there is a Norton descendant who thinks he descends from Marc Norton. He could end up with a perfect match with another descendant, but he also would get a perfect match from a descendant of Ned, or Uncle Hub, or even a more distant 'Uncle'. DNA tells us that we are from a particular 'clan', but we still need to have historical documents to show us the exact relationships.
The second weakness of DNA is that once in a while there is a match with a family of a different surname. This could be random chance, since there are billions of people on this planet! More likely is that the two folks share common ancestors before surnames were ever used! Between 500-1000 years ago, surnames were first used by Europeans. It was even more recently than that in some cultures. There are obviously many people who share common ancestors from the pre-surname era, but have totally different surnames. I actually have a fairly good match with a man named Fishback (translated from German as Fish-Creek). His family and ours came from the same area of westcentral Germany at about the same time in the early 1700s. We almost certainly have a common ancestors. There is just no way to say who or when.
The third weakness of DNA is that sometimes there is no match when it seems that there should be. This is usually because of what is called a 'non-paternal' event. Some non-paternal events may have negative connotations. Examples of these would be rape or infidelity. Because we may never know the details of such a situation, or the reasons for such an occurrence, it may be better to leave it alone. Some examples of non-paternal events can be viewed in a much more positive light. Two examples of this would be adoption or step-family situations. If any of these situations are 'known' by future generations, there are no surprises, but as we all know 'family secrets' are very common, sometimes for good reason. It turns out that even if the odds of such an occurrence are low, when several generations are involved, it becomes quite likely that some sort of 'non-paternal' event may occur. If the historical documentation is good enough, even if the DNA does not match, it could be the correct family.
Since the Y-chromosome is what is tested in this type of analysis, every generation in the line of folks tested must be men. There are types of testing in which women can be involved, but because of the surname tradition in America, it is difficult to find a long line of women for whom the 'paper trail' exists. This means that there is no easy way to use DNA to verify our connection to families such as the Beasleys, Roes, Fosters, Woods, Hudsons. All of these lines are important to us, we just have to use traditional family history methods to verify the relationships.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
DNA Results - The Long Version
Let me first state that I do not feel that our genes or DNA connections are of any significance. The only reason I work on family history is because I enjoy it, and I certainly hope others will do the same. I love all of my current family. The relationships I have with cousins, nieces, nephews, siblings, or any 'in-laws' are all SOOOOOO importance to me, whether we share DNA or not!
The reason DNA testing is important is that it can scientifically verify whether the 'paper trail' we have found is correct or not.
We now have proof that goes back three centuries. Hans Heinrich Hoffman's 300th birthday will be in 2012, and Ebenezer Norton's 300th birthday will be in 2015. We have DNA confirmatiion that these men and their wives were our g,g...grandparents.
We do not have any DNA from these folks, so how does this DNA thing work? Here is my best effort at an explanation:
Most of human DNA gets all mixed up because we get half from our mother and half from our father. But the copies of the Y-chromasomes are passed down with no changes from father to son, although rare mutations do happen. Because this Y-chromasome does not change much, men who share the same male ancestors also share exact copies of his Y-chromasome. My Y-chromasome is the same as Joe Hoffman, is the same as Harold Wayne Hoffman, is the same as the father of Sylvester Hoffman, is the same as the g-g-g-grandfather of Sylvester, etc.
If we can find a very distant cousin who descends from a known common ancestor, we can verify this relationship with DNA testing.
This is exactly what we've done in both the Norton and Hoffman families.
For our Hoffman family, there is a man named Lee Hoffman, who lives in Montgomery County, Kentucky. He has traced his ancestry to the same family as we have (Hans Heinrich and Margaret [Huettenhen] Hoffman). After DNA testing, he and I ended up with a 36/37 match for our Y-DNA. The odds of this happening are difficult to calculate, but they are astronomical. Imagine two people, each sitting down with dice and rolling matching numbers 36 out of 37 times. In the case of our DNA, the laboratory measures 37 different locations on the Y-chromasome. One of the 37 markers obviously had a minor mutation. In fact, the one marker that mutated in this case, is a spot that has a fairly high mutation rate. So when considering the 15 generations that separate Lee and I, it might be expected to have at least one marker off by one. (From me to Hans Heinrich is 8 generations, and from Hans Heinrich down to Lee is 7 generations).
Since I know a little bit about laboratory testing, I was actually somewhat suspicious of how accurate these results would be. After looking into it, I can confidently say that it is amazingly precise. It is much like counting the links of a short chain, between about 10 and 25 links at each 'location' along the Y-chromasome. The way that these links are 'counted' is as nearly perfect as any testing can be.
Because the Y-chromasome is passed down through men, only men can participate in Y-DNA testing. But women can benefit from the knowledge. Ruth's brother Dan was just recently notified of his results. Our reasearch showed that our Nortons descend from a family in Guilford, Connecticut in the late 1600s. Two other descendants of this family have had DNA testing, so we hoped for a match. Dan matched one man 23/25 and the other man 35/37. These matches are not perfect, but are very, very good. The coordinater of the Norton DNA Project immediately knew which family we came from, even before we told him!
In the left hand column of this blog, I will link to the two DNA projects mentioned above. I would love to get a DNA verification of other branches of our family. I know there are Stout men and Bagley men who could contribute to this. If anyone knows of someone who would be willing to participate, please let me know. It is a very simple thing. You just rub the inside of your cheek with a swab they send you in the mail, and send it back to them. Then wait to see if you hit the lottery numbers right or not! There is a cost, but if you are interested it is well worth it.
Like all forms of 'evidence', there are some problems with DNA testing, I will cover these in the next post.
The reason DNA testing is important is that it can scientifically verify whether the 'paper trail' we have found is correct or not.
We now have proof that goes back three centuries. Hans Heinrich Hoffman's 300th birthday will be in 2012, and Ebenezer Norton's 300th birthday will be in 2015. We have DNA confirmatiion that these men and their wives were our g,g...grandparents.
We do not have any DNA from these folks, so how does this DNA thing work? Here is my best effort at an explanation:
Most of human DNA gets all mixed up because we get half from our mother and half from our father. But the copies of the Y-chromasomes are passed down with no changes from father to son, although rare mutations do happen. Because this Y-chromasome does not change much, men who share the same male ancestors also share exact copies of his Y-chromasome. My Y-chromasome is the same as Joe Hoffman, is the same as Harold Wayne Hoffman, is the same as the father of Sylvester Hoffman, is the same as the g-g-g-grandfather of Sylvester, etc.
If we can find a very distant cousin who descends from a known common ancestor, we can verify this relationship with DNA testing.
This is exactly what we've done in both the Norton and Hoffman families.
For our Hoffman family, there is a man named Lee Hoffman, who lives in Montgomery County, Kentucky. He has traced his ancestry to the same family as we have (Hans Heinrich and Margaret [Huettenhen] Hoffman). After DNA testing, he and I ended up with a 36/37 match for our Y-DNA. The odds of this happening are difficult to calculate, but they are astronomical. Imagine two people, each sitting down with dice and rolling matching numbers 36 out of 37 times. In the case of our DNA, the laboratory measures 37 different locations on the Y-chromasome. One of the 37 markers obviously had a minor mutation. In fact, the one marker that mutated in this case, is a spot that has a fairly high mutation rate. So when considering the 15 generations that separate Lee and I, it might be expected to have at least one marker off by one. (From me to Hans Heinrich is 8 generations, and from Hans Heinrich down to Lee is 7 generations).
Since I know a little bit about laboratory testing, I was actually somewhat suspicious of how accurate these results would be. After looking into it, I can confidently say that it is amazingly precise. It is much like counting the links of a short chain, between about 10 and 25 links at each 'location' along the Y-chromasome. The way that these links are 'counted' is as nearly perfect as any testing can be.
Because the Y-chromasome is passed down through men, only men can participate in Y-DNA testing. But women can benefit from the knowledge. Ruth's brother Dan was just recently notified of his results. Our reasearch showed that our Nortons descend from a family in Guilford, Connecticut in the late 1600s. Two other descendants of this family have had DNA testing, so we hoped for a match. Dan matched one man 23/25 and the other man 35/37. These matches are not perfect, but are very, very good. The coordinater of the Norton DNA Project immediately knew which family we came from, even before we told him!
In the left hand column of this blog, I will link to the two DNA projects mentioned above. I would love to get a DNA verification of other branches of our family. I know there are Stout men and Bagley men who could contribute to this. If anyone knows of someone who would be willing to participate, please let me know. It is a very simple thing. You just rub the inside of your cheek with a swab they send you in the mail, and send it back to them. Then wait to see if you hit the lottery numbers right or not! There is a cost, but if you are interested it is well worth it.
Like all forms of 'evidence', there are some problems with DNA testing, I will cover these in the next post.
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