It has been another long dry spell since my last post so I’ll try some birthdays to get jump started. I’m working up some “oomph” to write up a biography for the St Clair County (Illinois) Generalogical Society (SCCGS) Quarterly’s Meet Our Ancestors feature and I think this will help.
There are no fewer than 31 January birthdays in my direct line of ancestors but I’m going to save some for a rainy day. I’ll just pick a few to get started with. First of all there is Anne Elizabeth (Daniels) Cardwell who was born 15 Jan 1866 and is one of Grandma Pottinger’s aunts, a sister of her father William Henry Daniels. She was born after the family arrived in Saint Clair County Illinois unlike her older siblings who were all from Poynton England. She married Henry C Caldwell in 1890 and they lived in St. Louis where Henry was a “stationary engineer” at a newspaper. She died in 1937 at age 71.
Next on the list is little Deema Sitzes, daughter of great grandmother Ann Sitzes, and my grand aunt. Deema was born 3 Jan 1894 in Bollinger County Missouri and died three months later. Grandma Sitzes sometimes talked about her children later in life and said that children died so often back then that they didn’t get too attached until they were up and walking around. Deema must have been one of those. Her son Charley hit her harder as he died at age 2. They are both buried in the Old Union Methodist Cemetery in Bessville Missouri along with a number of other Sitzes relatives.
Next, we’ll dive deep into ancient history and come up with my 7th great grandfather Col. Robert Tyler who was born 6 Jan 1671. Robert was the father-in-law of my 6th great grandfather Samuel Pottinger and thus the grandfather of my 5th great grandfather Robert Pottinger. Col. Robert married a Susanna Duval (hmm, could I be related to Robert Duvall?). He was appointed peace commissioner of Prince George’s County Maryland in 1696 by King William III. Peace Commissioners were today’s Justice of the Peace and a leading figure in local governments 100 years before the American Revolution.
Last but certainly not least I’ll give a nod and a Happy Birthday to my great grandmother Mary Francis (Barry) Pottinger whose birthday is tomorrow since she was born 16 Jan 1854 in Rusk County Texas. She may have been born at home on the Angelina River where her father William Barry was postmaster. For some reason unknown to me the family moved from Texas to southeast Missouri near present day Wyatt where the family was beset by all sorts of trials including malaria and death from eating spoiled pork. But Mary Francis survived to marry my great grandfather Sam Henry Pottinger resulting in my becoming a 9th generation Missourian instead of a Texan. She died 2 days after her birthday in 1928 at her daughter Amma’s home in Kansas City.
Digging Up Relatives 