John and Mary (King) YAUGER: My ggg-grandfather John Yauger and his wife Mary King came from Lycoming County, PA in 1815. They brought with them their son Robert, born in 1813 in PA. They settled in Butler County, Morgan Township, just north of the Hamilton County line and only a mile or two east of the Indiana line. My gg-grandfather William Yauger was born in Ohio in 1815 shortly after their arrival here. His wife was Rebecca McHenry, second of five daughters born to Enoch McHenry and his wife Rhoda Hand. A third son John, Jr. was born in 1817. Sometime in the early 1820s the family moved a mile or two south into Hamilton County and remained there until about 1853, when all the family except William (and his wife and children; my ancestor) moved to Sand Creek Township, Decatur County, IN. While still in Ohio, a fourth son was born to John and Mary in 1830, whom they named Isaac. There is some reason to believe that Isaac had a twin sister.

One of the children of William Yauger and Rebecca McHenry was William Wesley Yauger, my great grandfather, born 1840. His wife was Charlotte Ludlow. William and Rebecca, and William Wesley and Charlotte are buried in the Macedonia Church Cemetery that is mentioned in the letter you referred me to. Rhoda Hand McHenry is also buried there according to old records, but there is no readible stone today. The Yauger stones are in good shape. I have stopped several times at the George Cemetery about 10 years ago when I was beginning work on my Yauger Family.

Today I live just south of Dayton, OH (Centerville), but am retired and spend the winters in Florida with my wife Barbara, maiden name Harris, who was named after Barbara Handley Yauger. Her father knew Barbara and her husband Clem Yauger when he was a kid, always thought she was a nice lady, and so named her Barbara. Well, she got the remainder of her namesake's name when she married me. Strange story!

Enough of that. Back to the Handleys. Let me say something about a piece of Handley information that I came across that indicated that it was uncertain whether or not James Handley (1760, VA) and his wife Isabella had a son James Handley, Jr. The information was that the Randall J. Handley book did not include a James Jr. while the work of a Judy Newland did. Maybe this difference has been settled by now? I did do a little checking, and a James and Charity Handley did exist in 1850 in Jackson Township, Fayette County, IN, with James of the proper age (born about 1796-7), to match the information of Judy Newland. And he was born in VA. However, the clincher that makes me feel that James Jr. should be included is that in the family in 1850, among the six children still "at home" (there were probably older children married and living on their own by 1850) is a 23 year old son named Archy. Certainly sounds like the right family.

Now to the information on the family of Barbara Handley, who married Alford Clement (Clem) Yauger. You originally asked if I had any information on her parents. I did give you that in my last email. In my curiosity, I checked back several older generations and found something that I could not find in all the Handley information in the Handley records. I'll try to explain.

Barbara Handley's parents were John (1841) and Hulda (Jenkins) Handley. That is where Barbara (1869) came from. And census information I looked up showed that John and Hulda had several other children also; Archy (1864 - there is that name again), Ellinnes (1873), and Stanley (1886). There could possibly be more. The 1900 Census shows a Gillie Hanley (no "d", but such is a common type of error census takers make; ten years later on the 1910 census the "d" is back in) born August 1872, and whose name appears in the letter you earlier referred my to, as head of a household and living in Morgan Township, Butler County, Ohio with his wife Sadie, widowed mother Hulda, and brother Stanley. John Handley, who appears with his wife and children on the 1880 census, has died between 1880 and 1900 (there is no 1890 census). In a minute I want to address where John Handley came from, but first let me say something about Gillie Handley.

The child Ellinnes Handley on the 1880 census (son of John and Hulda) has to be the adult Gillie Handley on the 1900 census. The age is the same for both. I don't know what his correct name might be. Possibly Gillie was a nick name? Or maybe his correct name was something like Gillinnes, which the census taker messed up?

Back to John Handley (1841). Where did he come from? There is a John Handley, born 1841 in your family records. He is the son of Robert Handley, but this family went to IN, and this John Handley marries someone other than Hulda Jenkins, and eventually went to Nebraska and died there.

Going back in the census records to 1860, I found a John E. Handley in Morgan Township, Butler County, Ohio of age 18 (good enough for a birth date of 1841) living with a Lavina Morgan. John is described as a "farm laborer" and Lavina Morgan is described as a "farm lady"?? The 1860 census does not give relationships, just individuals in the same household.

A look 10 years earlier at the 1850 census shows John Handley, age 9 (good for 1841) living in Morgan Township with Thomas Morgan, age 50, and Lavina Morgan, age 41. My conclusion is that most likely Lavina Morgan is John Handley's mother and Thomas Morgan is his step father. But who is John Handley's father?

Your Handley Family information lists the children of James and Isabella Handley. Archey, George, James, Robert, Isabel, and Jane. Lets look at Archey Handley.

Archey Handley was born 1789 and died in 1842 per your family information. His wife's name was Rebecca, who was born about 1790. She died in 1839. Your family information says that they are both buried in the George Cemetery and gives their death dates and ages. Your records do not indicate they had any children.

I looked for Archey Handley, Morgan Township, starting with the 1820 census. Until 1850, only the name of the head of the family (normally the husband) is given; other males and females are indicated in an age group. Archey Handley is found on the 1820 census, age range 26-44 (he should be 31, which fits). He has an un-named wife of age range 26-45 (she should be about 29-30, which fits). There are two other males living in the home, one age 16-26, which is too old to be their son, and one under 10. The one under 10 could be a son?

On the 1830 census for Morgan Township, only Archey and his un-named wife are living in their family. Archey's age range is 40-49, which fits (he should be 41). His wife's age range is 30-39. She should be about 39. Archey's wife Rebecca dies in 1839 before the 1840 census. We don't know what happened to the male child under 10 of ten years earlier. If he was a son, he has probably died as he would be between 10 and 19 years old now and not likely to be head of a family of his own. So what do we find for Archey's family in 1840?

On the 1840 census Archey is in the age group 50-59 (he should be 51, which fits). Rebecca has died, but there is a female living with him in the age group 30-39, somewhat younger than Rebecca and young enough to have children. The Lavina Morgan mentioned above would be 31, which fits.

Archey died in 1842. John Handley was born in 1841. If Archey and Lavina are the parents of John, John's father died within a year or so of his birth. Lavina Handley (still young) has 8 years to marry again and be found on the 1850 census as Lavina Morgan, wife of Thomas Morgan, with a 9 year old John Handley in the home.

Well, circumstantial evidence maybe. One more thing. Lets look at who the neighbors of Archey Handley and Thomas Morgan were. Their neighbors would be those listed on the various census lists just before and after themselves. In 1840 when Archey was living with what appears to be a second and younger wife, two of his neighbors were Samuel DeArmond and Catharine George. In 1850 the neighbors of Thomas and Lavina Morgan were Samuel DeArmond and Catharine George. Lavina was living in the same place in 1850 with her husband Thomas Morgan as Archey was living in 10 years earlier in 1840 with a "younger woman". Couple this with the presence of John Handley (1841) and I think its clear that John Handley (1841) is the son of Archey Handley (1789), and John named one of his sons Archy after the father he never knew.