THE FAY FAMILY PAGE GENEALOGIES |
PARTCH AND FORD COUSINS |
Daniel Merritt Fay married Amanda Cornelia Ford in 1848. Research on their marriage and background led to the discovery of a lot of interesting information about two other lines, information which actually made it possible to build up a large body of circumstantial evidence for the ancestry of Daniel Merritt. Their story begins in Chittenden County, Vermont, continues to Pennsylvania and Ohio, and then to Iowa. It can be summarized this way: |
1) Henry Fisk Fay and Betsey Talcott had a son Henry T. Fay, born in 1797. Henry Fisk, born in Bennington, was, with his brother Nathan, one of the first settlers of Richmond. Henry T. was born there and married there. His wife was Almina Partch, the daughter of James and Tamar Hayes Partch, who was born in Hinesburg, about 1805. Henry and Almina then moved to Conneaut, Pennsylvania, with their family. They spent some time in western New York state, for their son Daniel Merritt seems to have been born in NY. At any rate, they had arrived in Conneaut by the time the 1840 census was taken. |
2) Thompson Partch Sr., born in Connecticut, moved to Vermont, arriving there shortly before 1800, possibly in the 1780's. His son James thus grew up in Hinesburg, a town close to Richmond. James died in 1817, the year his son James was born, and Tamar Hayes, wife and mother of James, didn't live long. James' young children seem to have been raised in the household of their grandfather Thompson. James' daughter Almina and Henry Fay were probably married about 1825, possibly earlier. Although the records of Richmond have been searched, no evidence has been found for the marriage or the birth of children. Almina and Henry went south to Conneaut, PA, as did James Partch. James was also in Conneaut in 1840, and then travelled with the group to Elkader/Boardman, Iowa in 1848. Also in Crawford County, in Beaver, are Daniel and Homer Partch. |
3) Ambrose Ford was born in 1788 in Massachusetts. He travelled to Ohio early on, and was living in Ashtabula County at least by 1830, probably already by 1820. His wife Fanelia Harvey was born in N.Y. He remained in Pierpont. His son Ambrose moved to Iowa to Farmersburg before 1860 and then to Boardman. He married three times. His first wife was Tamar Partch, a daughter of Homer and Lois Partch. She died in or shortly after the birth of their son Homer A. Ford in 1858, and Ambrose remarried, a woman named Sarah. She had one daughter in 1860; she died before 1870. Ambrose then married a third time. We know this because in 1900 Ambrose is living with his son Homer in Florida in 1900. With them is Homer's sister Inez M. Ford, born 1878. Ambrose is a widower. A search of the census for 1880 shows only one Inez of the right age, living with her mother Hellen in Clermont, Fayette County, IA. Ambrose is not listed in the household, nor can I find him in 1880. |
TIMETABLE |
1830 |
Fay: Henry in Richmond VT Ford: Ambrose in Pierpont OH Partch: John, Adoniram and Thomas in Hinesburg VT |
1840 |
Fay: Henry in Conneaut PA Ford: Ambrose in Pierpont OH Partch: James in Conneaut, PA; Homer and Daniel in Beaver PA |
1848 |
Fay: Daniel and Amanda Ford married in Pierpont OH Partch: James removes to IA, others stay PA Ford: Ambrose remains in OH |
1850 |
Fay: Daniel and Amanda (Ford) and Henry in Boardman IA; Almina in Conneaut PA with Homer Partch Ford: Ambrose in Pierpont OH Partch: Homer in Conneaut PA; James in Boardman IA; John A. and Daniel Merritt in Conneaut PA |
1860 |
Fay: Daniel and Amanda (Ford) in Read (Elkader) IA Ford: Ambrose in Farmersburg IA Partch: Homer in Farmersburg IA; James and John A. in Boardman IA |