As you go further back in time, it is sometimes difficult to find your ancestors. That was the case with Isaac’s wife, Eleanor Longbottom. I could not find her birth date or birthplace on my family tree website.

Isaac Adams

Born: 30 JAN 1696 in Sudbury, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA

Father: Richard Adams (1651 to 1728)
Mother: Rebecca Davis (1658 to Unknown)

Spouse: Eleanor Longbottom (Birth Year Unknown to 1784)

Married: 1727 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA

Children:

Miriam Adams (23 JAN 1728 to Unknown)
Josiah Adams (27 MAR 1730 to 4 NOV 1755)
Nehemiah Adams (23 OCT 1731 to 1802)
Lydia Adams (9 MAR 1733 to 5 APR 1757)
Abner Adams (5 NOV 1735 to 5 AUG 1825)
Isaac Adams (18 JUN 1737 to Unknown)
Eleanor Adams (15 JAN 1739 to 29 APR 1756)
William Adams (10 NOV 1741 to 1784?)
Timothy Adams (7 SEP 1742 to 25 AUG 1834)
Mary Adams (9 OCT 1744 to 17 APR 1785)
Betty Adams (15 APR 1746 to Unknown)
Noah Adams (27 AUG 1747 to 26 JUL 1819)
Daniel Adams (12 JAN 1752 to Unknown)
Chester Adams (15 JUN 1754 to 17 MARCH 1829)
Kezia Adams (24 MAY 1756 to 27 AUG 1825)

Died: 26 APR 1757 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA

Timeline: no documentation available

Occupation: farmer

Records:

Connecticut Town Death Records, pre-1870 (Barbour Collection)
Connecticut, Wills and Probate Records, 1609-1999
The U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970

Variations of Surname: none

Did You Notice?

Five of Isaac and Eleanor’s 15 children died before they reached 50 years old.

Josiah died when he was 25 years old.
Lydia died when she was 24 years old.
Eleanor died when she was 17 years old.
William died when he was 43 years old.
Mary died when she was 41 years old.

I discovered that the average life expectancy was between 36 and 38 years old.

Isaac’s Wife:

Eleanor Longbottom:

I do not know when or where Eleanor was born. She died in 1784 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

After Isaac died, Eleanor married Benjamin Fassett on 5 FEB 1758 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Benjamin Fassett was born on 7 JUL 1690 in Billerica, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. He died on 3 OCT 1764 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Benjamin had previously married Elizabeth Parks on 4 FEB 1714 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. Five known children were born to this marriage:

Elizabeth Fassett (1715)
Benjamin Fassett (1717)
John Fassett (1719)
Adonijah Fassett (1720)
Josiah Fassett (1725)

Elizabeth Parks was born on 29 JAN 1692 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. She died on 18 AUG 1757 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Isaac and Eleanor’s Daughters:

Miriam Adams:

Miriam was born on 23 JAN 1728 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. I do not know when she died.

Miriam married Noah Adams on 26 JAN 1756 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Eight known children were born to this marriage:

Lewis Adams (1756)
Abner Adams (1757)
Asaph Adams (1759)
Noah Adams (1762)
Alice Adams (1764)
Achsah Adams (1766)
Delight Adams (1768)
Cyril Adams (1771)

Noah Adams was born on 3 OCT 1723 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. I do not know when he died.

Several family trees have Miriam’s death date as 1771. They also note that Miriam and Noah died in Pomfret. I could find no death records in the Barbour Collection of Connecticut that verify these statements.

I did discover that five of Miram and Noah’s children moved to Otsego County, New York, USA. They were Lewis, Abner, Asaph, Achsah, and Cyril. Delight married and moved to Illinois. I could find no information on Noah and Alice.

There are entries on the 1800 US Census for several of these individuals. They were living in Hartwick, Otsego County, New York, USA.

Could Miriam and Noah have moved to Harwick to live with one of their children? The state of New York did not require the registration of deaths until the late 19th century.

Are there any pre-1880 church records available for Hartwick, Otsego County, New York, USA? I will continue my search and update this post if I find any new information.

Lydia Adams:

Lydia was born on 9 MAR 1733 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 5 APR 1757 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Lydia was 24 years old when she died.

Eleanor Adams:

Eleanor was born on 15 JAN 1739 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 29 APR 1756 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Eleanor was 17 years old when she died.

Mary Adams:

Mary was born on 9 OCT 1744 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 17 APR 1785 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Mary married Bethuel Frost on 20 JUN 1765 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. No known children were born to this marriage.

Bethuel Frost was born on 28 APR 1741 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. He died on 30 AUG 1768 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Bethuel was 27 years old when he died.

After Bethuel died, Mary married Peter Woodward on 22 DEC 1774 in Brooklyn, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Five known children were born to this marriage:

Peter Woodward (1776)
Lee Woodward (1779 estimated)
Dorcas Woodward (1882 to 1884)
Daniel Woodward (1884 to 1884)
Bethuel Adams Woodward (1785)

Peter Woodward was born on 16 AUG 1733 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. He died in 1806 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Peter had previously married Althea Armstrong on 24 DEC 1755 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Six known children were born to this marriage:

Deidama Woodward (1756)
Lee Woodward (1759)
Welthen Woodward (1761)
Eliza Woodward (1764)
Ezekiel Woodward (1766)
Isaac Woodward (1768)

Althea Armstrong was born in 1729 in Norwich, New London County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 16 MAR 1774 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

After Mary died, Peter married Deliah Butts on 19 AUG 1785 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Two known children were born to this marriage:

Lydia Woodward (1786)
Charlotte Woodward (1788)

Deliah Butts was born on 25 MAR 1765 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 12 DEC 1789 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Deliah was 24 years old when she died.

After Deliah died, Peter married a woman named Ruth Whitney on 10 MAR 1790 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. No known children were born to this marriage.

The marriage record listed Peter’s fourth wife as Ruth Whitney. I believe this was her maiden name. If she were widowed, the entry would have included the letters Mrs. before her name.

I do not have any other information on Ruth Whitney.

Betty Adams:

Betty was born on 15 APR 1746 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. I do not know when she died.

Betty married Zebulon Tyler on 17 APR 1766 in Brooklyn, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Two known children were born to this marriage:

Celia Tyler (1766)
Abijah Tyler (1770)

Zebulon Tyler was born on 11 MAR 1736 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. I do not know when he died.

The 1790 US Census indicates that Zebulon and Betty were living in Canterbury. This record contained very limited details. It listed four males over the age of 16 years old and one female. That could indicate that more children were born to Betty and Zebulon.

I did discover that their two adult children had moved to Oneida County, New York, USA. This might suggest that Zebulon and Betty may have moved with them.

Kezia Adams:

Kezia was born on 24 MAY 1756 in Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 27 AUG 1825 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Kezia married Jesse Parke on 1 JAN 1784 in Brooklyn, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. One known child was born to this marriage:

Eleanor Parke (1784)

Jesse Parke was born on 14 AUG 1752 in Preston, New London County, Connecticut, USA. I do not know when Jesse died.

My Thoughts:

Four of the people listed above may have died in the state of New York, USA. They were Miriam, Noah, Betty, and Zebulon.

New York did not require deaths to be registered until 1880. My next recourse would be to look for church and burial records in the New York counties. If these records were digitized and put into one database, it would make the search much easier.

I will check back periodically to see if my wish comes true.

Back to Eleanor Longbottom:

The Scarcity of Records:

As you go further back in time, it is sometimes difficult to find your ancestors. This can be caused by a lack of documentation. Weather, erosion, and time may have destroyed vital records such as baptisms, marriages, and burials. Another reason could be that your family tree website does not have these records scanned into its databases.

When I searched for information on Eleanor Longbottom, only one record appeared in the search results. It was a “hint” on Ancestry.com. This led me to a publication entitled “The Bottum/Longbottom Family Album“. You can also read this book on Archive.org.

The Publication:

The entry on Page 7 lists Eleanor’s maiden name as Longbottom. This information must have come from one of the Longbottom descendants. This entry did not include Eleanor’s birth year or birthplace.

The marriage date in this entry is incorrect and was probably mistranscribed. It was listed as 5 FEB 1748. The Barbour Collection for Connecticut and Early Connecticut Marriages listed it as 5 FEB 1758.

The author of this publication also hinted that Eleanor’s father may have been Thomas Longbottom. He appears on Page 6 of this publication.

The other gentleman mentioned in this entry was Daniel Longbottom. He died in 1732 in Newent, New London County, Connecticut, USA. His probate record listed his wife and children. Eleanor’s name was not included in this document.

The Find A Grave Memorial:

There are memorials on Find A Grave for Eleanor and Isaac. I did not find these memorials using the traditional search process. I had to go through their son Isaac’s memorial. This probably occurred because the creator of the memorials did not include burial locations.

Eleanor’s memorial listed her middle name as Garrett. Could this be her mother’s maiden name?

The creator of this memorial also listed Eleanor’s birth year as 1696. I do not believe this date is accurate. If Eleanor was born in 1696, she would have given birth to her last child, Kezia, when she was 60 years old.

The creator of this memorial is not accepting messages. For that reason, I cannot ask him how he obtained this information.

The Family Trees:

The family tree databases were no help in answering these questions. They contained a whole array of misleading information.

Some of them listed her husband as Eleanor Adams. Huh? Some listed her father as Benjamin Fassett. Some had her born in 1696 and some had her born in 1705.

Marital Age In 18th Century New England:

I discovered that the legal age to marry was 12 years old for females and 14 years old for males. These age limits have changed over the years but were based on when a woman reached puberty.

My Guess on Eleanor’s Age:

Eleanor gave birth to her first child in 1728 and her last child in 1756.

If she was 12 years old when she married Isaac, she would have been born in 1715. That would mean she was 41 years old in 1756.

If she was 16 years old when she married Isaac, she would have been born in 1711. That would mean she was 45 years old in 1756.

I will split this down the middle and say she was born in 1713.

My Opinion:

With hazy memories and scant documentation, all we can do is make assumptions. Was Eleanor’s maiden name Longbottom or Garrett? Was she born in 1711 or 1715?

I would use caution when adding information to your ancestor’s profile. If you do not have documentation to back up your claim, add a citation to explain why you added the data. If you have the record, scan it onto your ancestor’s profile. That way other family researchers will know where the information originated.

My family tree website is continuously adding new databases to its collection. When I return to Eleanor’s profile in a year or so, I hope to find new records that will answer these questions.

Notes:

John Adams (1595 to 1633) was the first person with that English surname to immigrate to North America from England. In 1621, John boarded the Fortune. This was the second ship, after the Mayflower, to bring puritans to North America. In late November of that year, the Fortune arrived at Plymouth Colony. John was the progenitor of all the Adams descendants listed in these posts.

Creating Your Family Tree

Interested in building a great family tree? Remember these important steps:

Look in your photo albums. You may have old pictures that your parents or grandparents gave you. Or, ask them for copies of photos that they have in their possession. Many people will write names and dates on the backs of photographs. Letters, diaries, and family bibles are also excellent sources for births, marriages, and deaths.

Talk to your older relatives to find out about your ancestry. They may relate stories about an ancestor that you can add to your family tree. Family history is usually not found in newspapers. It is more of a verbal memory that is passed down from generation to generation.

Find the right family tree builder that suits your needs. You can choose one that has a paid subscription like Ancestry.com. There are also free sites like FamilySearch.org.

When you start building your family tree, add documentation to your ancestor’s profile. The records can include birth, marriage, death, census, military, city, and county directory listings. Any information that you can find will help create a life story about your ancestor.

If you have a unique surname, like Wakenight, you may find databases on the internet that are useful in your search. I use SurnameDB.com for my English surnames. There are many others on the internet for other countries like Ireland, Italy, and Germany.

Genealogy is the study of a person’s “line of descent.” As you create your family tree, you would typically start with one individual and go “back into time.” You would add their parents, grandparents, and so on.  There are also family trees that go “forward into time.”  Many of these family trees start with a famous person, such as a president or royalty, and move forward into the present time.  The purpose of this type of pedigree is to establish a person’s bloodline with that famous person.

There is no limit on how big your family tree can grow. The blank canvas is there for you to use. Cherish your family history, and it will be there for generations to come!