The 2013 edition of the biennial reunion of the Rowlison family will be held on July 19-22 in Hastings, Nebraska.
We've booked the Hastings Hotel and Convention Center located at 2205 Osborne Dr. E. just off Highway 281 in the north part of Hastings.
We have a block of rooms reserved at a rate of $89.99 per night with a booking deadline of June 19, 2013; extra rooms will be released to a waiting list of Softball Tournament folks on that day.
I will be contacting our many cousins by email or snail mail shortly. Contact me with any questions, etc. at jjhnsn@windstream.net or P. O. Box 508 in Sutton, NE 68979.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
2011 Reunion - Colorado Springs
The descendants of James Demetris Rowlison and Rhoda Walton held their biennial reunion in Colorado Springs during the weekend of July 22 - 24, 2011. A smaller than usual group attended with no loss of enthusiasm as a smaller group. About 35 people attended.
The highlight of the weekend was the dinner and show at the Flying W Ranch - since destroyed in the Waldo Canyon fire on June 26, 2012. See: http://www.gazette.com/articles/ranch-140885-reportedly-waldo.html
We enjoyed visiting at the hotel on Saturday, all day and headed out to a restaurant for dinner Saturday evening.
Our only glitch of the weekend was when Lena missed the briefing on start time for the dinner and she and Roscoe arrived a couple of hours early. Actually it was not that much of a glitch as they took advantage of the extra time and caught a fine nap.
It was a fine dinner followed by the usual fundraising auction conducted by the family huckster, BJ of Illinois.
The highlight of the weekend was the dinner and show at the Flying W Ranch - since destroyed in the Waldo Canyon fire on June 26, 2012. See: http://www.gazette.com/articles/ranch-140885-reportedly-waldo.html
We enjoyed visiting at the hotel on Saturday, all day and headed out to a restaurant for dinner Saturday evening.
Our only glitch of the weekend was when Lena missed the briefing on start time for the dinner and she and Roscoe arrived a couple of hours early. Actually it was not that much of a glitch as they took advantage of the extra time and caught a fine nap.
It was a fine dinner followed by the usual fundraising auction conducted by the family huckster, BJ of Illinois.
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| Our section of the house at the Flying W show. |
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| Waiting for the show |
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| There was more rainbow than rain that night. |
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Lena's 100th Birthday
HAPPY 100th Birthday, LENA
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| Lena and her new boy friend Roscoe at our evening at the Flying W Ranch in Colorado Springs July 22, 2011 |
Lena Alma Rowlison was born August 24, 1912 in Logan Township, Sheridan County, Kansas. All of the Rowlison and Walton (and I'm sure Bryan) families wish her the best of birthdays. We all wish we could be at the birthday party on Sunday the 26th.
Our family tree is noted for the longevity of many members with a good number of "nonagenarians." As far as I know, and I welcome corrections, Lena is the third to reach the centenarian milestone.
Pearl Goesch (Winnie Pearl Rowlison) (11 Aug 1879 - 1 Nov 1982) was the daughter of Merritt (or Merit, or Uncle Met) Walton and Zenah Ann Strait. Many of us attended Pearl's 100th birthday party in Edgar in 1979. Pearl was a niece of Rhoda (Walton) Rowlison and was first cousin of Lena's father.
Hazel Blanche (Rowlison) Nelson (15 Aug 1901 - 19 Dec 2004) was the daughter of George Abraham Rowlison and Clara Ethel Clements and was Lena's first cousin. I just happened to be visiting Nebraska the week of Hazel's 100th birthday and had the good fortune of spending an hour or so with her in the home in Geneva.
Lena is the last of her generation, my mother's generation within the James and Rhoda Rowlison family and as far as I know, the last of that generation in the Isaiah Walton and Eliza Jane Hall family as well.
Lena's father was Gustavus Adolphus (Uncle Dolph) Rowlison (1866 - 1919), the first child of James and Rhoda Rowlison born in Indiana before they began their extended migration to Missouri, Iowa, multiple Nebraska farms and finally to Hoxie, Kansas. Dolph followed his parents through the complete trek to Kansas where many of his descendants live today.
Her mother was Madge Bryan (1880 - 1959) whose family I have not (yet) researched.
Lena was the sixth of eight children born to the Bryans.
As to Lena's health, her grand niece and frequent visitor Linda reports that Lena continues to do well. Lena has weakening vision but otherwise is in good health. I can attest, based on visits at reunions in 2007, 2009 and 2011 that Lena holds up her end of the conversation very well.
If you'd like to join us in wishing Lena a happy 100th birthday by sending a card, please email me at jjhnsn@windstream.net and I will send you her mailing address.
Happy Birthday, Lena
2013 Rowlison Reunion preliminary information
Our next reunion will be in Hastings, Nebraska probably in late July, 2013 - exact date not set yet.
Nebraska was the overwhelming choice of the group in Colorado Springs in 2011. James & Rhoda lived on four farms in the Edgar area during their migration from Indiana to Hoxie, Kansas. Clay County, Nebraska and surrounding area was the center of the Rowlison and Walton families and remains so to a great extent today.
Rhoda (Walton) Rowlison is buried in the Ong, Nebraska cemetery. Her father, Isaiah Walton and one of her brothers are buried in the Marshall Union Cemetery north of Edgar. Maggie Alice (Rowlison) Cassell and Martha Anna (Annie) (Rowlison) Cassell, daughters of James & Rhoda are buried side-by-side along with their Cassell brother husbands in the Edgar Cemetery.
I have located three of the four sites of the farms where they lived in the Edgar area. Kids numbers 8, 9, and 10, James, Roy and Mabel were all born on those Edgar area farms.
The reunion will be held in Hastings with a day trip into Clay County to visit those sites of family interest. We will post details as soon as we settle on them.
Nebraska was the overwhelming choice of the group in Colorado Springs in 2011. James & Rhoda lived on four farms in the Edgar area during their migration from Indiana to Hoxie, Kansas. Clay County, Nebraska and surrounding area was the center of the Rowlison and Walton families and remains so to a great extent today.
Rhoda (Walton) Rowlison is buried in the Ong, Nebraska cemetery. Her father, Isaiah Walton and one of her brothers are buried in the Marshall Union Cemetery north of Edgar. Maggie Alice (Rowlison) Cassell and Martha Anna (Annie) (Rowlison) Cassell, daughters of James & Rhoda are buried side-by-side along with their Cassell brother husbands in the Edgar Cemetery.
I have located three of the four sites of the farms where they lived in the Edgar area. Kids numbers 8, 9, and 10, James, Roy and Mabel were all born on those Edgar area farms.
The reunion will be held in Hastings with a day trip into Clay County to visit those sites of family interest. We will post details as soon as we settle on them.
Monday, July 4, 2011
2011 Rowlison Reunion - July 22-24 in Colorado Springs
The 2011 Reunion of the descendants of James D. & Rhoda Rowlison will be held in Colorado Springs on July 22-24. Contact me at jjhnsn@windstream.net for more information.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Death of Ellen Walton
Ellen Walton appears in my genealogy file as the second child of Abraham and Mary (Polly) Walton, born 1802 and died 1805. The death of a three-year-old child was not uncommon in those days. I knew nothing more of about Ellen's story.
Isaiah Walton, Rhoda's father, was the sixth child in the family born in 1812. So we are talking about Rhoda's aunt here.
In researching Oxford County, ME, I bought a copy of The History of Woodstock, written by Wm. Lapham and published in a small edition in 1882. It was republished in 1983. It relates the story of the first death in Woodstock, Maine, a story I told the couple at the funeral home in South Woodstock and a story they hadn't heard.
The original being a pre-1923 publication, copyrights have expired and I'll quote the relevant passage:
"The first death in town was that of a child of Abram Walton. Mr. Walton settled on one of the lots in the east part, which was run out by Smith. He felled trees and burned them in the autumn. The next spring, he built a log hut and moved in with his family. He junked and piled his piece in early summer, and set fire to it. While it was burning, his little daughter, three years old, wandered away from the house, and was burned so severely that she died. Her name was Ellen Walton. It is said by some that this occurred the year before the Bryant brothers made a settlement in the west part, upon the grant to Dummer Academy. Walton and Hutchinson, who came in with him, did not remain many years, but moved away, the former going west and the latter building a mill at North Paris."
Elsewhere in the book Lapham credits the Bryant's with being the first settlers in Woodstock but acknowledges that E. Hutchinson and A. Walton may have been there earlier but both left so the Bryant's are credited with being founders of the community. Abraham Walton had married Ebenezer Hutchinson's daughter Mary (Polly) in 1799 - New Year's Day. There were other family members - a Walton brother and at least one other Hutchinson nearby.
The Hutchinson's, Walton's and another family, the Jordan's all migrated from Oxford County to Ohio and then to Jefferson County, Indiana. Isaiah was the last child in the family born in Woodstock (1812). The next child was born near Cincinnati (date unk) and the last two in Jefferson Co., Indiana after 1823. My records show Ebenezer Hutchinson died in Ohio in 1828.
I hadn't made another connection until this Maine trip. in 1999, Rita and I spent a few days in Jefferson County, Indiana looking for Rowlison, Walton, Hutchinson, Evans and Kinnear traces. There are two communities called Paris and Paris Crossing in the area just North of Deputy where the Walton's settled and where Rhoda was born. Could our ancestors have been responsible for naming those towns for the Maine towns they came from? Circumstantial at this point, but entirely credible in my opinion. Even likely.
Isaiah Walton, Rhoda's father, was the sixth child in the family born in 1812. So we are talking about Rhoda's aunt here.
In researching Oxford County, ME, I bought a copy of The History of Woodstock, written by Wm. Lapham and published in a small edition in 1882. It was republished in 1983. It relates the story of the first death in Woodstock, Maine, a story I told the couple at the funeral home in South Woodstock and a story they hadn't heard.
The original being a pre-1923 publication, copyrights have expired and I'll quote the relevant passage:
"The first death in town was that of a child of Abram Walton. Mr. Walton settled on one of the lots in the east part, which was run out by Smith. He felled trees and burned them in the autumn. The next spring, he built a log hut and moved in with his family. He junked and piled his piece in early summer, and set fire to it. While it was burning, his little daughter, three years old, wandered away from the house, and was burned so severely that she died. Her name was Ellen Walton. It is said by some that this occurred the year before the Bryant brothers made a settlement in the west part, upon the grant to Dummer Academy. Walton and Hutchinson, who came in with him, did not remain many years, but moved away, the former going west and the latter building a mill at North Paris."
Elsewhere in the book Lapham credits the Bryant's with being the first settlers in Woodstock but acknowledges that E. Hutchinson and A. Walton may have been there earlier but both left so the Bryant's are credited with being founders of the community. Abraham Walton had married Ebenezer Hutchinson's daughter Mary (Polly) in 1799 - New Year's Day. There were other family members - a Walton brother and at least one other Hutchinson nearby.
The Hutchinson's, Walton's and another family, the Jordan's all migrated from Oxford County to Ohio and then to Jefferson County, Indiana. Isaiah was the last child in the family born in Woodstock (1812). The next child was born near Cincinnati (date unk) and the last two in Jefferson Co., Indiana after 1823. My records show Ebenezer Hutchinson died in Ohio in 1828.
I hadn't made another connection until this Maine trip. in 1999, Rita and I spent a few days in Jefferson County, Indiana looking for Rowlison, Walton, Hutchinson, Evans and Kinnear traces. There are two communities called Paris and Paris Crossing in the area just North of Deputy where the Walton's settled and where Rhoda was born. Could our ancestors have been responsible for naming those towns for the Maine towns they came from? Circumstantial at this point, but entirely credible in my opinion. Even likely.
Our visit to E. Hutchinson's grist mill
Rita & I were in Maine just after Thanksgiving and with a bit of detective work found the probable site of Ebenezer Hutchinson's grist mill. Ebenezer was the great grandfather of Rhoda Walton. He and his son-in-law, Abraham Walton and other family/friends were in Oxford County, Maine in the late 1790's and until about 1812. Histories of Paris and Woodstock, Maine mention them and give some clues about their stay.The Maine histories describe a grist mill operated by E. Hutchinson on the south outlet to Moose Pond near North Paris, Oxford County, Maine. The outlet actually is in the NW corner of the pond and goes west before turning to the south and west. I guess close enough. We visited with some locals and learned that folklore mentions multiple mills in the area but each person directed us to this location on a back road along the outlet. This first photo is
of Moose Pond taken looking to the Southeast from Abbott Road just north of Route 219. North Paris is to the right (west) of Moose Pond.This appears to be the remains of a stone dam on the stream. Is this the remains of a 1812 grist mill? Probably not, but maybe. We know that Ebenezer sold the mill and it may have operated for some time afterwards. This may have been something else, but after searching around the pond, this is my candidate for most probable location.
There is a cute little gift shop at the site. Realize that this is on a small road, little more than a driveway to a distant residence, off a back road. Not a place you'd expect to find a gift shop in any event.The young lady in the gift shop could only repeat the folklore that we'd heard from others - there was a mill at the stream here sometime in the past. She was surprised when I suggested that the mill site I was looking for had been in operation before 1800.
On the way to Moose Pond we stopped at a couple of other sites. The Woodstock Historical Society was closed for the season. It is located in the NW part of Woodstock, near the community of Bryant Pond.
At South Woodstock, we thought we'd stumbled onto a real bit of luck when we came across a real mill. It turned out to be the mill at Andrew's Pond, likely restored or rebuilt from an earlier time. It may give us some idea as to what old Ebenezer's mill might have looked like. Suppose?
There is a funeral home across the road and only a few hundred yards away. We spent some time with the couple there who took a real interest in our quest. They gave us directions to Moose Pond and told a few stories of the area's history. They had recently purchased the business from a fellow who was the fifth generation of his family in the mortuary business there. The business sign gives an established date of 1837.
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