Voices from the Past—Are There More?In the most basic sense, we wouldn’t know anything about our
ancestors or our genealogical heritage if it weren’t for “voices
from the past.” These “voices” come in a variety of
ways—newspaper articles, censuses, court records such as birth, marriage, and
death certificates, and on headstones. All of these help us put together
a picture of those who have gone before us and whose blood flows in our
veins. One kind of “voice” is special, and that is those that
come to us in the actual words of those gone by. They too come in a
variety of forms—in Bibles, letters, journals, and a few in formats
written specifically to pass on family history (sometimes in the form of
a family tree). Such voices exist on sheets or scraps of paper, often
yellowed and sporting time-worn edges. Some are copied into notebooks of
one sort or another. My interest in family history started in two of these
categories. Guy Lockwood copied from his grandmother’s Bible, and I
copied from him. It’s been so long ago now that I don’t remember the
exact form of Guy’s copy, though it might have been a single piece of
paper. I know it wasn’t anything big and bulky. I still have a
“freeze frame” memory of sitting there and copying it. For several decades I had in my possession the small notebook
into which I copied it, but the years and my “roamings” have been
too many. If it is still in my possession, I haven’t seen it in years.
Fortunately, I had the sense sometime along the way to realize how
important it was, and I made another copy. I’m happy to report that I
know exactly where that copy is; I saw it just the other day in its
properly designated place. Of all the branches of my family history that I’ve
explored—Porter, Stauffer, Hawkins, and the many branches that have
fed into those, the only one I know of that has “personal” voices
from the past is the Compton one. Family history has apparently been
important to Comptons for many, many generations. Here is what Harriet
Compton Robinson wrote to her cousin after, apparently, attending some
sort of reunion: …by this means I have found many of our father’s people of whom we
had lost all trace for many years. I have been to visit Ida [a niece]
and as I stated, have been to Buffalo to see Wm. And I can assure you it
has been a source of great blessing to me to have found the whereabouts
of so many of you. I had the pleasure of reading various records of the
family sent by different members and have myself taken memoranda of all
I could that I did not already know. I love that she calls it “a source of great blessing.”
What is it about the Comptons or their story that makes family ties and
history so important to them? Is it due to that claim of a connection to
a noble house, the line of Spencer Compton? Since we’ve so far not
been able to confirm that link, I doubt that’s it. Is it because the
first “American” in the family gave his life in the war for
independence? He not only gave his life but we believe had come from
England as an adult not long before that conflict. That story about his
jaw being shot off never let me forget. That helps, but I doubt is
enough to stand alone. Most
Here is a summary of the “personal voices” from the past
that I know of among the Compton descendants. The William
referred to in each one is the son
of the one who fought in the Revolution, husband of Hannah Phebe Post and
father of what I call the Compton “clan” of eleven children born in
the forty years following the Revolution. Following the summaries is a
chart showing the relationships visually. HANNAH COMPTON WELLS – second generation, daughter of William and Hannah
Phebe and granddaughter of William who fought in the Revolution. Hannah’s
information was written in her Bible, likely many years before she died
in 1888. (Shared by Esther Gross, descendant of Hannah.) See Hannah’s
Bible for what she wrote.
She
talks about her great-grandfather coming over from England and lists the
children in her own family of origin. Harriet lived until 1935, and that
letter is signed and dated 1910. In both letters she mentions that
(unfortunately for us L)
she “cannot for the life of her” remember the name of the wife of
the one who came from England and died in the Revolution (see Mysteries
We Wrestle With). The
content of the second letter is similar, but the handwriting is
different, so it is likely not Harriet but a close relative. It
appears to be written to a cousin one generation later, but we can’t
be sure who. DELPHINE LOCKWOOD WILSON – fourth generation, daughter of
Anna Lockwood’s son William, so great-granddaughter of William and
Phebe. Dated 1911. (Shared by Ellie Drake, descendant of Anna.) This one gives us in a 7-page .PDF document of seven
double-spread, handwritten pages punched
and ribbon-bound in notebook format with focus on descendants of Seymour
and Anna Lockwood, about half of them with birth dates. It starts by
simply saying “Hannah Post came over from Holland married William
Compton,” then lists the eleven children, followed by a list of two
thirds of the children with spouses. On the next page it begins with
Anna and Seymour, and it ends with a Ray Lockwood who married in 1915.
It appears to have been “interrupted” at that point. ELVA MAE DUNHAM and likely her two sisters – fifth generation,
great-granddaughters of David Compton, so great-great-granddaughters of William and Phebe. Their
mother and aunt are believed to be their sources, so that would put them
one generation closer, done perhaps the 1920s.
(Shared by Bob Schwab descendant of David.)
This one comes to us on 42
electronic .GIFs of the original pages (no clear indication of original
format). First page is headed “History of the Compton Family” and
tells how the first Compton came from Normandy in 1040 and helped
William the Conqueror. It continues with accounts of how various Compton
estates came into being as reward for services. This is the source that
tells of Hannah Post coming over from Holland with her younger sister
(see Mysteries We Wrestle With).
It gives us several pieces of information we don’t have elsewhere, but
some key information does not square with other sources closer to the
events themselves. Chart
of descendants who left written records and their relationships
to
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HARRIET
COMPTON ROBINSON