Welcome to Family

In 1990 I received a copy of a history of the Wilson Family compiled by my cousin Horace Wilson. This was a handwritten history beginning in 1778 with the birth of James Dunlap, but the following concentrated on the descendants of William F. Wilson I. This aroused my curiosity about my family and I began to research all the branches further. I have compiled a database of information on the family comprising of 7,161 individuals to this point. This book covers only a portion of the total.

The relationship given for the various people listed is to me; that is, if it states so-and-so is Grandmother, then she is my Grandmother.

There are many hurdles one must jump when tracing a family, especially when so many of our surnames are very common, such as Wilson and Brown. Sources sometimes give conflicting data and one is not always certain which William Wilson is the right William Wilson, for instance. In same cases I make a best guess assumption based on place, time and other logical pointers. This doesn’t guarantee I have assumed correctly; however, most of what is gathered here isverifiability true. Often a hunch is proven by a lucky discovery, such as the family Bible pages preserved in the vault of the Chester County Historical Society Library in West Chester that proved information I had been given as to the ancestry of Benjamin Franklin Meredith.

There is also the problem of spelling. Many people used different spelling of the same surname, even though brothers and sisters. One may have spelled Wilson as Willson; one person may have spelledBruner as Brunner. Spellings also changed over time. The old Welsh spelling of Meredith was Maredudd. This later became Maredydd and then finally Meredith. The common pronunciation has become Mare-Dith, but the proper pronunciation should be Ma-red-ith. The double DD in Welsh was pronounced as TH. Gruffydd in Welsh would be the modern name Griffith.

The families have ties to many famous and infamous personages. If I am correct, I am a fourth cousin of Richard M. Nixon. This is interesting because one of the links between my family and Nixon was a man named Joshua Baldwin, whose daughter with Mercy Brown was Hannah Baldwin who married William Milhous, Sr. Joshua was married several times and his wives were Sally Downing, Mercy Brown and Ann Meredith.

Speaking of Downing, we are tied to the founder of Downingtownthrough the marriages of my two Grand Aunts, Helen and Clara Wilson.

We are apparently a second cousin to President George Washington, whose mother Mary Ball was a first cousin of my 5-great grandmother Elizabeth Ball. Elizabeth Ball married a Talbot and her offspring married a Bruner whose offspring married a Townsley, and there you go.

We also are related to the royal family of England, but this is not unexpected because our ancestors in Wales were the royalty of that country once. Of course one interesting link to British Royalty is through Joan of England, the illegitimate daughter of King John I.

The branches of our family are also intermingled by marriages. My own father and mother are second cousins since William F. Wilson II, who is a great grandfather on my mother’s side was the brother of Emma Bicking Wilson who was my great great grandmother on my father’s side having married Benjamin Franklin Meredith I. I also found many of my friends had some relationship to me through marriages. But this is not surprising given the limit population of the area at one time and that many of these families were Quakers and knew each other.

At any rate, click on the links to follow the currents of my family history.

Joel Ellsworth Downing 1890

Joel Ellsworth DOWNING

 was Born on August 8, 1890 in Valley Creek, Chester Co., Pa. Joel Ellsworth died on 23 July 23, 1984, he was 93. he was buried in St. Paul's Churchyard, Lionsville, Pa. Alias/AKA: Ellsworth.

 

On December 3, 1916, when Joel Ellsworth was 26, he married Clara Wilson, (Great Aunt), daughter of William Frederick Wilson Jr. and Anna Margaret Dunlap. Clare was born on April 18, 1893 in Lionville, Chester Co., Pa. and died on July 16, 1975, she was 82. She was buried in St. Paul's Churchyard, Lionsville, Pa. She resided in Anselma, Pa. in 1916.

They had the following children:

                        William Ellsworth (1C1R), born on April 14, 1918. William died on August 10, 1987, he was 69. On February 14, 1948, when William Ellsworth was 29, he married Irene McLaughlin, born  About 1920.

                         Dorothy Wilson (1C1R) was born on July 14, 1919 in West Chester, Chester Co., Pa. and died in 2008. She resided in Alaska in 1968. She resided in Washington State in 2007. On 11 March 11, 1968, when Dorothy Wilson was 48, she married Robert E. Menig, born about 1919. Robert E. died on March 22, 1990, he was 71.

                       Anna Margaret (1C1R) was born on July 27, 1921 in West Chester, Chester Co., Pa. On November 5, 1945, when Anna Margaret was 24, she married William George Baldwin Sr., born about 1920.

                        Ruth Esther (1C1R) was born on August 16, 1923 and died in 2008. She resided in Pocopson Home in 2007. On March 30, 1946, when Ruth Esther was 22, she married Marshall Fields, born about 1930. Marshall died on January 31, 1987, he was 57.

                        Marian Louise (1C1R) was born on September 11, 1925 in Sugartown, Chester Co., Pa. Marian Louise died on December 6, 1986, she was 61. On February 19, 1949, when Marian Louise was 23, she married Wallace E. Conner, born about 1925

                        Clara Jean (1C1R) was born on June 12, 1928 in Sugartown, Chester Co., Pa. On January 3, 1947, when Clara Jean was 18, she married Albert Holston, born about 1925.

                        Alice Lucinda (1C1R), born on June 15, 1931 in Sugartown, Chester Co., Pa. Namesake: Great Grandmother Lucinda Couch Evans and her Father's sister Alice Lucinda Downing. On July 25, 1952, when Alice Lucinda was 21, she first married Leslie C. Hughes, born about 1930. They were divorced in January 1958.

On August 28, 1959, when Alice Lucinda was 28, she second married Granville B. Cantrell, born on October 12, 1919. Granville B. died on January 20, 1993, he was 73. He was buried in St. Paul's Churchyard, Lionsville, Pa.

(See Family Currents Wilsons for further information on the children of Ellsworth and Clara Downing.

Herford Evans Downing 1888

Herford Evans Downing (Grand Uncle) was born on September 4, 1888 and died in Pottstown Hospital, Pottstown, Pa. at 10:00 PM on December 8, 1958, he was 70. He was buried on December 12, 1958 in St. Matthews Lutheran Cemetery, Chester Springs, Pa. He resided in Malvern, Pa. in 1916. Cause of death: Stricken while at work on Monday December 8, 1958.

On April 28, 1915, when Herford Evans was 26, he first married Helen Wilson (G Aunt), daughter of William Frederick Wilson Jr. and Anna Margaret Dunlap. Born on February 13, 1890, Helen died on June 24, 1919, she was 29. She resided in Malvern, Pa. in 1916. Namesake: Named for Grandmother: Esther Helen Bicking. Cause of death: Died of complications following birth of Emily Margaret. [See Wilson Family Posting.]

Apparently, Helen died from complications resulting from the birth of her second child, Emily. Emily was subsequently adopted by Helen's oldest brother, William and his wife Lizzie, who were childless. Her first child, Herford remained with his father.


They had the following children:

Herford Evans (1C1R) was born on 18 March 18, 1917 and died on August 28, 1994, he was 77. Alias/AKA: Evans.

On November 15, 1940, when Herford Evans was 23, he married Ruth Henzie, born in 1916.

Emily Margaret (1C1R) was born on May 2, 1919.


In 1920, when Herford Evans was 31, he second married Sadie Guest, born about 1900. Sadie died on June 6, 1983, she was 83.

The Guests and Whites were regular attendees of the annual Wilson Family Reunion. I used to associate with Audrey quite a bit at these affairs, since she was close to my own age. I always thought she was a cousin. I knew that Beulah White was Audrey's mother. I was never quite certain who Sadie was, although I knew she always came with Beulah. I never heard anyone in my family refer to her by anything other than Sadie Guest. They never called her Sadie Downing. After I found out that she was Uncle Herford's second wife, I realized that none of the Guests or Whites were really relatives of myself or of the Wilsons. How strange, but civil it strikes me that a family would continue to include the family of the second wife of Helen's husband in the reunions as part of the family, even after Herford's death.--LEM


They had the following children:
Quinton Guest, born on March 8, 1925. and died on June 3, 1989, he was 64. On June 21, 1945 when Quinton Guest was 20, he married Doris Zeigler, who was born About 1925.

Beulah L. was born on August 25, 1921. On January 6, 1940, when Beulah L. was 18, she married Earl Woodrow White Sr. Earl Woodrow is deceased.

Francis Fizz Brown II

Francis Fizz BROWN II, my Grandfather, was born on January 30, 1900. Francis Fizz died at 424 Washington Ave., Downingtown, Pennsylvania on February 6, 1957, he was 57. he was buried on February 9, 1957 in Grove Methodist Churchyard, Grove, Pennsylvania. He resided at 424 Washington Avenue, Downingtown, Pa. in Dec 1941, resided at the George Thomas III Estate, Whitford, Pa in 1922 and resided in Grove and Green Hill before 1922. Cause of death: Cirrhosis of the liver. He was under a physician's care since August 1956.

Occupation: Foreman, Downingtown Iron Works since 1933. Occupation: Carpenter on the Main Line. Namesake: Named after his Grandfather. Alias/AKA: Brownie.

Circa 1956, Francis shattered his leg in a fall off a ladder into a tank that he was working on at the Downingtown iron Works. He was laid up for about six months, and had a great deal of pain. I believe he began drinking heavy because of this accident and pain. He had drank before this accident, and always carried a plug of chewing tobacco and a pint of whiskey in his car to share with Bill Yarnell and other friends, but now he began to drink early in the evening until he would simply pass out. In 1957-58 he was diagnosed with Cirrhosis and told he had to stop drinking, which he did, but apparently it was too late.--LEM

"Brown - In Downingtown on Feb. 6, 1957, Francis F., husband of Esther W. Brown, in his 58th year of his age. Relatives and friends are invited to attend the funeral without further notice from the Hicks Funeral Home, 229 S. High St., West Chester on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 2 P. M. Interment in Grove Methodist Cemetery. Friends may call Friday evening."-2/6/57

Francis F. Brown, foreman at Downingtown Iron Works since 1933, formally of Whitford, died at 3:15 a.m. today at his home, 424 Washington Ave., Downingtown, where he had lived since 1942. He had been under a physician's care since August. Last week he observed his 57th birthday. A native Chester Countian, Mr. Brown formally worked as a carpenter on the Main Line. He lived most of his life around the Grove and Green Hill sections and belonged to the Minquas Fire Co. and Chester County Fireman's Assn. His wife Esther Wilson Brown survives along with a daughter, Mildred, wife of William Meredith, Pottstown RD; sister, Mary, wife of Leroy Seeds of Paoli, and one grandson. There are three brothers: Millard, of this place; Ralph, Strafford; Paul, of Grove rd. at Indian King. Daily Local News. 2/6/1957

On 20 February 20, 1920, when Francis Fizz was 20, he married Esther Wilson, Grandmother, daughter of William Frederick Wilson Jr. and Anna Margaret Dunlap. Born on 11 June 11, 1899, Esther died in Phoenixville Hospital, Pennsylvania on January 8, 1987, she was 87. She was buried in Grove Methodist Churchyard, Grove, Pennsylvania. She resided alongside Rt. 100, Bucktown, Pa. in 1987, resided in Downingtown, Pa. in 1957 and resided in Anselma, Pa. in 1916. Religion: Methodist Member of Bethel Methodist Church, Spring City, Pa. Namesake: Named for her Grandmother: Esther Helen Bicking.

They had one child:
Mildred (1920-)

Harriet "Hattie" Dunlap, my great great Aunt was born 1871.

I knew Aunt Hattie, but can't tell you much about her. I was very young when I was taken to visit her in her home, which I believe was in Philadelphia, somewhere around 41st and Chester. (My wife and I once lived at 42nd and Chester.)

I was somewhat afraid of her. She was very old (she was 80 the year I was born) and I remember her place as dark and suffocating.

Probably my most vivid memory is not of my Aunt when she was alive, but of her after her death. She was cremated and her ashes were given into the hands of my Grandmother. There was a box that sat on a dining room bureau in our house for weeks. I use to pass it with some apprehension.

Finally, we all went to a cemetery and my Grandmother spread my Aunt Hattie's ashes across a grave, whose I do not know.

My Aunt Harriett was known for her wide and varied hats, as can be seen in these photos, thus her nickname of "Hattie", which is what we all called her. (Although it may be she wore the hats to live up to the nickname. I have discovered her first census listing was in 1880, when she was 9, and she was listed as Hattie. I hardly think at nine she was famous yet for big hats.) 

When I knew her, she was the women in the picture on the right, an old lady. I do not know who the child is with her, only that it isn't me.

Aunt Hattie never married and lived alone most of her life.

Lilly Dunlap Dague 1859

Lilly Dunlap was one of my great great Aunts. She was born in 1859. Her photograph on the right was dated 1875.

In 1880, when she was 20, she was a school teacher. She also seems to have went by the name Mary as well as Lilly. On the 1860 census, there is listed a one-year old named Mary E. L. There is a later reference to Lilly as mary. This makes me think her given name may have been Mary Elizabeth Lilly Dunlap and she choose to go by Lilly at some point in her childhood.

She married a farmer named Elias D. Dague and they had three children.

      Mary J.

      

      Oscar

      J. Graham

Lilly is the second from the right in the this family photograph, persumally with her husband and two of their children. The photo is marked as "1 missing", so that must have been a third child. I would guess the girl next to lilly must be Mary J.

(This and the following photos were dated 1880.)

In this photo are two boys . I am guessing the boy in the wide-brim hat is who is missing from the previous photograph and is Aunt Lilly's other child.

Again, I am making an assumption that this is my Uncle, the man named Elias Dague that Lilly married, tending these horses, although the dress looks similar to the boy in the previous photo.

This photo was labeled "Lilly Dunlap Dague's Homestead 1880".

Belle Dunlap c.1850

Belle Dunlap was my great great Aunt born about 1861. Belle died in her home in Philadelphia, Pa. on April 2. 1940, a year before I was born. She was 80. She was buried on April 5, 1940 in Honey Brook Presbyterian Cemetery. She resided at 3615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa. in 1940.

"Dunlap - Belle Dunlap passed away at her home.3615 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, Pa. on April 2, 1940. Services on Friday at 1:30 p. m. at the Oliver H. Bair Building, 1820 Chestnut St., Philadelphia. Internment at Honey Brook Presbyterian Cemetery." - 4/4/1940

In 1880, at age 18,  Aunt belle was a school teacher. She never married.

James Evans Dunlap 1823

James Evans Dunlap (GG Grandfather) was born on 23 December 23, 1823. James died on Tuesday evening April 26, 1887 in his home in West Caln Township, he was 63. He resided in West Caln Township, Chester Co., Pa. in 1887. Occupation: Framer and shoemaker.

"Dunlap - In West Caln, on Tuesday, April 26 h, 1887, James Dunlap, aged about 70 years."-4/28/1887

"James E. Dunlap Last Wednesday morning the sad intelligence came into town of the sudden illness and death from rupture of Mr James E. Dunlap, a well known and respected citizen of West Caln. He was taken ill about 6 o'clock in the evening, and died a few hours afterwards. It has been only about one month since his wife died and now the husband will soon sleep by her side in the city of the dead. He leaves several grown-up children to mourn his death" -Honeybrook Graphic 4/29/1887

On October 5, 1848, when James Evans was 24, he married Rachel Supplee Boyer (GG Grandmother), the daughter of Samuel Boyer & Margaret Supplee. Rachel was born on February 21, 1830 and died on March 25, 1887, she was 57. She was buried on March 28, 1887. She resided in Honeybrook, Pa. in 1887.

"Funeral - Mrs. James Dunlap, Honeybrook, was buried yesterday. Deceased was a sister of Michael and Martin Graham. Her death was very sudden. She was well advanced in years." - 3/29/1887 (Here is a conflict with the information from the Wilson Family History by Horace Wilson. Horace gives Mrs. Dunlap the name of Rachel Supplee Boyer, not of 'Graham and he gives a birth date in 1830. I would not consider the age of 57 at the time of death as being 'well advanced in years'. The death notice seems to be of the right James E. Dunlap's wife. The name is right, as the death dates agree in both sources. Also, the death notice on James E. Dunlap on 4/49/1887 mentions he died 'about one month since his wife died'. LEM) 2

They had the following children:

A son was born circa 1849-50. The child was eight months old at the time of the 1850 census, but apparently died before the next census. Name unknown.

Josiah (GG Uncle) was born 1851. 

Samuel (GG Uncle) was born 1853.

Anna Margaret (1855-1934), who was my great great grandmother.

(And as pictured on the right from left to right:)

Belle (GG Aunt) Born 1863. 

Lily (GG Aunt) was born in 1859. Lily married a Dague.

Harriett (GG Aunt) was born in 1871.

James W.  (GG Uncle) was born in 1863. [It is possible Belle and James W. were twins, but it is also possible they were born the same year, but nine or ten months apart or that Belle was actually born in 1862. - LEM)

In 1860 James' mother, Biddie Evans Dunlap was living with him as was a farmer named Elias Birchman.

James Dunlap 1778

James Dunlap, my GGG Grandfather was born on February 5. 1778 and died before 1850.

James married Biddie Evans (GGG Grandmother), the daughter of David Evans & Elizabeth Morehouse. Biddie was born in 1791.

They had one child:
James Evans (1823-1887)

Thomas James Dunlap 1753

Thomas James DUNLAP, was my GGGG Grandfather on the Wilson side. Born on February 1, 1753 in Ireland or Scotland, Thomas died in 1836 at 82. He immigrated in 1799 to Chester County, PA. He resided in Cecil Township, Washington County on September 25, 1805. Occupation: Farmer with a 194 acres farm. Thomas married a woman named Jane (GGGG Grandmother).

They had the following children:
John (GGGG Uncle), born before 1778.

James (GGGG Uncle) 1778-<1850

Alexander (GGGG Uncle)

Jane (GGGG Aunt)

Unknown male 1 (GGGG Uncle)

Unknown male 2 (GGGG Uncle)

Unknown male III (GGGG Uncle)

William Frederick Wilson Jr 1856

William Frederick Wilson Jr., Great Grandfather was born on August 29, 1856 in Honeybrook, Pa. William Frederick died on December 31, 1933, he was 77. He was buried in St. Paul's Churchyard, Lionsville, Pa. He resided along Route 100 below St. Paul's Reformed Church (Now Marchwood Apts.) in 1929 and resided in Anselma, Pa. in 1916. Alias/AKA: Frederick, Fred. He was a: farmer of 180 acres in Lower Uwchlan Township, Chester County, Pa. Education: Mr. Jacob Harvey's School at Unionville. Religion: Attended St. Paul's Reformed Church.

Frederick Wilson, a leading farmer of Lower Uwchlan Township, Chester County, is a son of William Wilson, who was a native of that county, where he passed his life as a farmer, and was also engaged in business as an auctioneer. For many years he was the proprietor of the Brandywine Hotel, which was situated above Coatesville. He married Amanda Hickens (sic, should be Esther Bicking). Mr. and Mrs. Wilson became the parents of the following children: Adelia, who married Lewis Hutton, who is now deceased; Charles, who is a resident proprietor of a restaurant in York, Pennsylvania, and married Sallie Nord of Coatesville; Emma, who is the wife of B. F. Merrills (sic s/b Meredith), a farmer in Pomeroy, near Coatesville; Frederick, mentioned at length hereinafter; and Frank, who was at one-time engaged in the restaurant business in Parkesburg, Pennsylvania.

Frederick Wilson, son of William and Amanda (Bickens) [sic] Wilson, was born August 29, 1856, in Honeybrook, Chester county, and received his primary education in the public schools, subsequently becoming a pupil at Mr. Jacob Harvey's school in Unionville. On leaving school, he decided to become a farmer, and in pursuance of this resolution has since devoted himself with marked success to agricultural pursuits. He is now the owner of a farm of one hundred and eighty acres in Lower Uwchlan Township. This estate, which is kept by him in a high state of cultivation, is supplemented by a dairy of thirty-five head of cattle. The very superior products of this part of his establishment meet with a ready sale in the markets of Philadelphia. Although taking an earnest interest in whatever concerns the welfare of the community in which he resides, Mr. Wilson , owing to the absorbing nature of his duties as an agriculturist, takes no active part in public affairs. Politically, he is a Democrat. He and his family attend St. Paul's Reformed Church.

Mr. Wilson married Annie, daughter of James Dunlap, of West Caln township, the former being a farmer who combined with his agricultural labors the trade of a shoemaker. The following children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Wilson: William, Evans, Helen, Clare, Eva (sic, probably Heber), and Esther. All these children are still at home with their parents, the sons acting as the assistants of their father in the care and management of the homestead. Chester and Delaware Counties Families History

St. Paul's along Route 100 in Lionsville, Pennsylvania

On the left is how it looked in 1900.

On the right is how it looks today (2008)

On 25 March 25, 1879 when William Frederick was 22, he married Anna Margaret Dunlap, daughter of James Evans Dunlap and Rachel Supplee Boyer. Anna was born on 20 November 20, 1855 and died on January 4, 1934, she was 78. She was buried in St. Paul's Churchyard, Lionsville, Pa. Alias/AKA: Annie.

On the left: William and Anna and their grandchildren in 1930.

They had the following children:
William Frederick (1880-1965)

James Evans (1884-1931)

Samuel Heber (1888-1976)

Helen (1890-1919)

Clara (1893-1975)

Esther (1899-1987)

Frank WILSON, Great Great Uncle was born on August 29, 1856. Frank died about 1910. Occupation: Restaurant business in Parkesburg, Pa. Frank married Anne Volkert, daughter of Leonhart Volkert and Margaret Pollot.

They had one child:
Celia. Celia married Herman KRAUSE.