What The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record Has To Say About Richard Davis

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record is an old and respected journal catering to researchers who are interested in former residents of New York State.  It's clear that the Davis family passed through New York on their way to Canada, and that at least three of them eventually returned.  I went to my local reference library today (it has a full run of the Record) and looked up all 26 volumes that had a Richard Davis indexed.  Most of them were other Richard Davises, but I did find a few articles with some good information.

I'm most excited about finding an abstract of Richard's will.  There are several databases of wills in New York state that I have checked to no avail, but now I know that Richard definitely did write a will, and I have the probate date.  One step closer to finding the will itself!

From Volume 57 (1926), p. 176, "Abstracts of Wills, Montgomery County, New York".

"RICHARD DAVIS of Charleston, will dated 1-2-1823, probated 6-2-1823, mentions--wife Mabel, sons, Henry, Joel, Hosea, Lyman, William, Joseph, Simeon, Andrew and Daniel;  daughters, Mary, Sally and Hannah.  Executors:  sons William, Daniel and Lyman.  Witnesses:  Frances Carey, Wright Davis, Wessn (?) Gage."

Richard died in 1823, so obviously he wrote this will shortly before his death.  Even the abstract gives us valuable information, most obviously which of his children were still alive in 1823.  Wright Davis was Richard's brother.

From Volume 59 (1928) p. 268 "Tombstone Inscriptions, Montgomery County, New York".

"Cemetery 3/4 mile North of Oak Ridge, Town of Charleston, Montgomery County, N.Y., Map No. 22...
Davis, Harry E., son of Henry and Mariah d. 2-19-1831, ae. 1-1-24.
Davis, David N., son of Henry and Mariah, d. 4-4-1839, ae. 4-8-13.
Davis, Mary C., dau. of Henry and Mariah, d. 12-15-1849, ae. 10-3-7.
Davis, Richard, d. 3-8-1823,  ae. 61-11-19.
Davis, Mabel, wife of Richard, d. 9-23-1846, ae. 79-206.
Davis, Infant son of  Hosea and Phebe, d. 12-14-1852 ae. 2 days.
Davis, Henry, d. 4-3-1876, ae. 69-9-3.
Davis, Maria, wife of Henry, d. 5-19-1861, ae. 54-5-15.
Davis, Lyman, d. 5-12-1878, ae. 79-8-10.
Davis, Catherine, wife of Lyman, d. 1-1-1858, ae. 54-9-   . 
Davis, Phebe Jane, dau. of Wright and Ursula, d. 9-27-1842, ae. 2-3-23.
Davis, Mary Jane, dau. of Wright and Ursula, d. 1-9-1851, ae. 4-10-15."

I had already known that Richard and Mabel were buried together at the Charleston Cemetery, but it's great to have a record of other family members buried in the same place.

From Volume 50 (1919) p. 276.  "Mohawk Valley Householders in 1800".

This article gives some interesting information about the geography of Charleson, which it refers to as "Charlestown".  It then lists Richard and Thadeus as residents in 1800.  I had thought that they were in Ontario at that time. 

"The town of Charlestown included in 1800 the modern towns of Charlestown, Glen, and a portion of Root, in Montgomery County.  At thje census of 1790 this area formed a part of the old town of Mohawk, distinct from the modern town of that name."

The Richard Davis household is listed as having 1 male under 10 years, 2 males between 10 and 16, 2 males from 16 to 26, and one male over 45.
The Thadeus Davis household is listed as having 1 male between 10 and 16, 1 male between 16 and 26, and 1 female between 26 and 45.  These two households are listed side by side. 

There is another entry which I think relates to earlier Davises in our line.

Volume 128 (1997) p. 176.  "A Proposed Family for Thomas Jones of Fairfield, Connecticut and Huntington, Long Island" by Frederick Hart, Jr.

"Children of Josiah and Joanna (--) Jones:...
3.  Thomas, b. 1719/20, d. Stamford 1769, m. 6 Dec. 1744 Mary Davis, b. 24 Feb 1727/8, daughter of Richard and Martha (--) Davis."

The Record appears to be a journal that I could explore further.  I'd like to see what it says about Thadeus, about Richard's siblings and children, and about the Norton family.  
 

The Davis family in Watervliet, New York

The 1790 United States census, which occured before the family of Thadeus Davis moved to Canada, locates several members of the Davis family in the town of Watervliet, Albany, New York.

Unfortunately, as with all early census records, the 1790 census does not record the names of each household member, just the heads of families.  It also doesn't give exact ages--there are three columns, one for females of any age, one for males over 16 and one for males under 16.  The William Davis family has two males under 16, one male over 16 and three females.  The Thadeus Davis family has three males under 16, two males over 16 and four females.    The Richard Davis family has four males under 16, one male over 16 and one female.  Cornelius Vandenburgh, the husband of Lois Davis, is also living in Watervliet, with a total household of three people, two females and one male over 16.   It's possible that other Davis family members were living in other parts of New York;  I see some possibilities, but don't have enough information to confirm anything.

I don't know much about Watervliet, but here's what Wikipedia can tell us:  the town of Watervliet was officially created in 1788 when New York divided all of its lands into towns rather than districts. At the time of the 1790 census, the population of Watervliet was 7,419 people.    The original settlers of the area (who were there well before Watervliet was created) were Dutch, and the original name of the settlement was the Manor of Rensselaerswyck (Watervliet only covered the Western part of this formerly larger area).   I'm guessing that a few of the Davis spouses--the Ostrander brothers, Cornelius Vandenburgh, and Johannes Van Patter--came from a Dutch background.  Since 1790 the town of Watervliet has been separated into smaller towns, but a Watervliet still exists in New York.

Interestingly, Watervliet is known for its Shaker community (the Shakers were a religious group also known as "Shaking Quakers" who believed in abstinence, a simple lifestyle, and gender equality).  I'd be surprised if any of our Davis family joined the Shakers--they're all pretty firm Baptists when they reach Ontario!

Davis Family Photographs from the Elgin County Archives Website

The newly revamped Elgin County Archives website features many more photographs from their collection.  The William Davis and Adoniram Davis families lived in Elgin, and here are some photos I found there. 

David F. Davis, son of William Davis and brother to our ancestor Adoniram Davis, served on the Elgin County Council in 1874.  He was the deputy reeve for Malahide. He is the back row, 6th from the left, with the big bushy beard.

Here's David separated out:

And here he is as an older man, circa 1912:

"

There is some confusion about his name.  The Elgin archives identify him as David Franklin Davis, which I have seen on some documentation.  However, other documents refer to him as David Flint Davis.  This is what the archives say about him:

"David Franklin Davis (1822-1912) was the son of Deacon William Davis (d.1865) and Mary Sibley Davis. He was the father of Polly (Mrs. Dr. Peter McLay) and Phebe (Mrs. Albert White)."

Remember, Polly Davis and Dr. Peter McLay were the couple whose marriage the congregation objected to?  Here are two almost identical pictures of Polly, her son Homer McLay, and Mary Davis, who was David F. Davis' wife.  The archives refers to this as "Two colour photographs of three generations: Polly Davis McLay, Homer McLay and Mary Davis."

 

Finally, the archives has a picture of Phebe Davis and family. Phebe is another granddaughter of William Davis:

"Mrs. Mary Davis, wife of David F. Davis died in 1898. Her great grandson Harley White was born in 1888.Two colour photographs of four generations: Phebe Ursula Davis White, Charles White, Harley White and Mary Davis."

 

Josiah Elliot in "The Bankrupt Directory"

Josiah Elliot was Robert Elliot's brother, and William Elliot's uncle.  He seems to have taken over the "Adam and Eve" public house after his father Charles' death.  He declared bankruptcy before he and Robert brought their families to Canada.  His name is listed in The Bankrupt Directory, a publication which seems to be aimed at the business community in London.   






Josiah is listed on page 131:

Biography of John Galloway Scott in "The Canadian Men and Women of the Time..."

Found while exploring the Canadiana Portal.

The Canadian Men and Women of the Time:  A Handbook of Canadian Biography.  Morgan, Henry James, ed.  Toronto:  W. Briggs, 1898.  Page 920.

Obituary of Sarah (Hawley) Scott

From the Ontario Evangelist, Vol 1, Number 12, April 1887, Guelph, Ontario:

Thomas Chalmers Scott's Toronto Property

In his will, Thomas Chalmers Scott left four adjacent pieces of property to his children;  three with houses built on them, and one lot which was being used as a garden.  Scott refers to this property as being on Shuter Street.  I have also found references in his obituary to property he owned on Pembroke Street. (Pembroke and Shuter are both in the same area, close to Allan Gardens in Toronto.)  What was this area like when the Scott family were living there?   I have found an interesting online publication which gives us an idea of the development of the area which the Scott family would have seen.  It's called A Storied Past:  The History of 103 Pembroke Street and it was produced by Caerwent House Stories.

William Allan, a Scottish immigrant who became Toronto's first postmaster and customs collector, became wealthy through various business ventures and in 1819 bought a hundred acre property, covered in original pine forest, in the area which includes both Pembroke and Shuter Streets.  On this land he built an estate called Moss Park, after his childhood home in Scotland, Moss Farm.   William Allan had only one child who survived to adulthood, George William Allan.  William gave his son half of the family property when George William married, and George William inherited the entire estate upon his father's death in 1854, and in 1854 he began to subdivide and sell off land.

Moss Park, Home of the Hon. G.W. Allan and family, circa 1898.  The home no longer exists. 

From the Toronto Public Library website:

1854. "Villa Lots for Sale on the Moss Park Estate Toronto the Property of G.W. Allan Esq." 

From A Storied Past:  The History of 103 Pembroke Street:

"It was in 1855, the year of his election as Mayor, that George W. Allan officially registered the subdivision in which Pembroke St. was located. At that time, perhaps due to the fact that he was now holding office, George Allan began to sell off the 64 lots he had created within Plan 150. Two of those lots, Lots 43 and 44, were sold in 1855 to one Thomas Chalmers Scott, who was perhaps a friend of Allan’s father. Like William Allan before him, Thomas C. Scott was a customs official, his official title was that of Surveyor of Customs. Thomas C. Scott bought the two properties in 1855 and by the early 1860's had built a substantial two-storey brick house on the property which was designated as 99 Pembroke St. He lived there with his family, which at the time of his death in 1876 
included one daughter and two sons. Thomas Scott was a devoted Baptist, and according 
to his obituary, held regulars religious meetings at his home (Appendix 1). In 1876, 
Thomas Scott died and at that time his heirs sold the south part of Lot 43, Plan 150 to Frederick J.A. Stewart."

Thomas Chalmers Scott would probably spin in his grave to hear himself described as a Baptist;  he was a Disciple of Christ.  I am not at all sure that he held religious meetings in his home--his obituary says that he "erected a meeting-house on Pembroke Street", which to me implies that this was a separate building.  The address given, 99 Pembroke Street, is in fact closer to Allan Gardens than to Shuter Street.  Thomas Chalmer Scott's wife Ann Galloway had died in 1854, a year before Scott bought this property; he would move in with  his second wife Sarah Hawley.  I'm not sure his children ever lived there.  His son John Galloway Scott was married by the 1860s and living with the Elliot family, right next door to his father and stepmother, according to the 1861 census.

1861 Census, St. David's Ward. Thomas Scott's family is living in a 2 storey brick house on King Street East, north side.

 In the 1871 census, he is still in St. David's ward.  It's hard to tell if he is in the same dwelling, but he has different neighbours.



"Originally or by 1858, there were approximately three large houses with perhaps a few adjacent 
carriage houses, etc. on this subdivision... Further south, there were more houses; however, the street was still not heavily developed. In the years from 1858 to the end of the 1870's the street’s popularity grew, eventually becoming one of the city's most prestigious addresses, which become home for many of Toronto's wealthiest manufacturers, judges, lawyers, and the like. For instance, during 
the late 1860's Paul Kane – the well known Canadian painter who lived from 1810 to 1871 
– owned property on Pembroke St. During the period up until the 1870's, the street was 
not fully developed and was fairly rustic...During the later part of the 18th century, Pembroke St. continued its position as a premier address. In 1878 a pavilion modeled after London’s famous Crystal Palace was erected, and 1885 the grounds were beautified, adding to the prestige to the 
community.".   

I find it exciting to know that that Thomas Chalmers and his wife lived in the same neighbourhood as Paul Kane.  I wonder how well they knew him?