Category Archives: Family Research

Obituary of a Pony Express Blacksmith

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Samuel Gideon Mozingo was a wanderer who traveled far and wide in the course of his life. He was a blacksmith, described as a man who was once affiliated with the short-lived Pony Express mail service. He was an early resident of San Francisco, California, and a prospector who sought his fortune in western mining towns in Nevada and Washington state. More importantly, he is the only known sibling of my 3rd great-grandmother Jane (Mozingo) Rice to have survived to adulthood. In an effort to learn the identity of their parents I have attempted to research his life in as much depth as her life. His 1913 obituary tells part of his life story. I imagine his nephews thought him the consummate frontiersman and undoubtedly enjoyed tales of his many adventures.

A Pony Express Man Dead

Samuel G. Mozzingo Shoed Horses—Early Plainsman.

Death Occurred Tuesday at Home of a Nephew, George L. Rice, in Brownell—Funeral at Baldwin.

  The funeral of Samuel G. Mozzingo, a pioneer of Kansas, and once connected with the pony express department of Uncle Sam’s business, occurred yesterday in Baldwin City. The death of the former Douglas County man occurred at the home of one of his six nephews, G. L. Rice of Brownell, Kans., near Ness City. He was 72 years old and had been ill for several weeks before his death on last Tuesday.

  Mr. Mozzingo was a blacksmith when a young man, and when he first came to this part of the state his headquarters were at Black Jack near where now is Baldwin City. He was a horseshoer for the pony express stations along the way and was well acquainted with the famous John G. Slade of whom Mark Twain has written in “Roughing It,” and who was one of the prominent pony express men.

  He came here in 1857 and after a time he followed the gold call and went to the mountains. At one time he was wealthy but mine speculations lost most of his money before he moved back here. He lived twenty years in the West, then returned and after a few years he went again and remained almost twenty years longer.

  The six nephews of Mr. Mozzingo are: George L. Rice, of Brownell, C. L. Rice of Garfield, W. H. Rice of Olpe, C. E. Rice of Le Loup, and S. V. Rice and G. N. Rice of Pomona.

  The two nephews from Western Kansas were in Ottawa today visiting with many of their friends in town.

Source:  “A Pony Express Man Dead,” The Evening Herald (Ottawa, Kansas), Sat., 11 Jan 1913, p. 1, col. 3; Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 Mar 2019).

Josephus Bingaman, Kansas Farmer & Inventor

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According to his hometown newspaper, my 2nd great-grandfather, Josephus Bingaman of Kansas, had achieved “signal success as an inventor”

We all know that physical traits run through a family, but what about aptitudes or things like creativity or mechanical ability?

My father often talks about his father (my grandfather Bingaman) as being a life-long tinkerer with mechanical things. He claims that when in the service in WWII, his father was one of the inventors of the early turbo engine but got no credit because he worked on this when employed by the United States government. I do not know whether there is any truth to this assertion, but it is a story that my father has relayed to me on numerous occasions and certainly believes to be true.

It is not surprising, then, to learn that my grandfather’s grandfather was also a tinkerer. Josephus Bingaman (also called Joseph or Joe) created mechanical things as well. He successfully patented several of his inventions, so that is how we know of them today.

The following article appeared in the Garnett Journal newspaper on 17 Jan 1908 and tells of his improvement for a plow attachment.

[transcription begins]

A New Invention

  Joseph Bingaman, of Garnett, was up today to interest the Ottawa parties in his latest patented invention, an attachment to the rear of a lister, which puts the ground in better condition[.] The attachment consists of a wheel suspended from a long axle, which packs the ground and breaks up clods. A patent was received by Mr. Bingaman for his article December 31st of last year. “With the patent came a huge pack of letters from eastern parties, wanting terms of sale for the patent right of the invention,” said Mr. Bingaman, “but I have not disposed of it yet.” In the past few years, Mr. Bingaman, who formerly lived in Franklin county, has had signal success as an inventor. In 1892 he invented a pruning hook or tree trimmer, for which he received a neat sum. In February 1907 he received a patent on a much better and handier tree trimmer. Off the sale of one-half of the patent right to this Mr. Bingaman received $4,100. “My latest idea is a modern manure spreader. The machine for which I have a model,” says Mr. Bingaman, “will lift 500 pounds of manure seven feet high and dump.” A model will be sent of this machine to the patent office at Washington soon. —Ottawa Herald.1

[transcription ends]

Another news item in another newspaper in an adjacent county tells a bit more of the story:

[transcription begins]

Has a New Patent

Joseph Bingaman Hopes to Interest Kansas City Implement Men.

  Joseph Bingaman of Garnett, was here over Sunday visiting his sons, Frank and Fred Bingaman. He was enroute to Kansas City, where he goes to consult with representatives of an implement concern with reference to a recent invention of Mr. Bingaman. He has invented a rolling packer attachment for listers that is attracting the attention of manufacturers. Mr. Bingaman has evolved a number of practical implements of value. In 1892 he patented a tree trimmer, which was put on the market by George W. Lawrence and sold readily. An improved cutter was brought out by Mr. Bingaman in February last.2

[transcription ends]

With the information from these historic news articles, it was easy to find the patent using the Google Patents search engine. My search resulted in an image submitted in support of the patent application and the text of the application itself. For his efforts, he was awarded United States patent number 875,407.3

US patent 875407
Detail of the invention of a plow attachment by Josephus Bingaman, U.S. patent 875,407.

1 “A New Invention,” Garnett Journal (Garnett, Kans.), Fri., 17 Jan 1908, p. 4, col. 2; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com), accessed 12 Jan 2019.

2 “Has a New Patent,” The Ottawa Daily Republic (Ottawa, Kans.), Mon., 13 Jan 1908, p. 1, col. 3; digital image, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com), accessed 12 Jan 2019.

3 U.S. Patent No. 875,407, issued 31 Dec 1907 to Josephus Bingaman; digital image, Google Patents (https://patents.google.com), accessed 30 Jan 2019.

Caroline Carson: A Contented Old Woman

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A 1914 newspaper account of the life of 84-year-old Mrs. Caroline Carson, a  resident of Chambersburg, New Jersey for fifty years

As genealogists, we search tirelessly for records for our ancestors that we then piece together in an attempt to create a narrative about their lives.

No matter how deftly woven, we know their stories are more than just a composite of various facts culled from easily obtainable records: birth, marriage, census, death and burial records. Lacking oral interviews, diaries or letters written in their own hand, how are we to truly get to know the individual as a person, when they lived and died long before we walked on this earth? Since time travel isn’t really a thing yet, I would argue that one way to pick up traces of our ancestor’s lives is to immerse ourselves in their world by reading the newspaper from their hometown. Beginning in the mid-1800s, often even small towns had at least one newspaper that reported on hyperlocal news items. Even seemingly mundane events or activities may have been reported, such as who was visiting whom, who was conducting business in the county seat, who was ailing or admitted to the hospital, who bought or sold real estate, who got an increase in their pension and such. The smallest bit of information can be the one clue that breaks open your research. All of these news items can either be plotted as data points in your genealogy software of choice or on a timeline. The information from these news items can also be used as pointers for research in other record groups.

Sometimes diligent newspaper research will be rewarded with something more than a snippet; you may get lucky and find a longer piece published about an ancestor. I was delighted to have found this 1914 article in an online historical newspaper archive about my 3rd great-grandmother, Mrs. Caroline Carson, of Chambersburg, New Jersey, in south Trenton. Certainly, she was interviewed by the reporter, so this is a first-hand account of her life in her own words, with additional observations made by someone who was in direct contact with her. It was fortuitous that she was interviewed and her story published when it was, as she died the following year.

I shared this news item years ago with several close cousins who are also direct descendants of Mrs. Caroline Carson. Today, I share it with you here as well.

The Chambersburg Page

[transcription begins]

MRS. CARSON, AT 84, IS UP DAILY AT 5

  “One of the most contented old women in Trenton today is Mrs. Caroline Carson, a widow, who is in her eighty-fifth year and who resides with her daughter, Mrs. Amanda Hart, at 100 William Street, in the Eleventh Ward.

  Mrs. Carson is a helpless invalid and has been such for the past five years. Her husband, Charles Carson, who was a sawyer at the old Hutchinson Bow Factory, was killed in 1866, when he fell on the large circular saw and his body was nearly cut in half.

  The old lady was born on a farm near Allentown January 17, 1830. She says that she worked on a farm in her younger days and, from force of habit, she cannot sleep after 5 o’clock in the morning and she invariably retires at 8 o’clock. She has lived in the old borough for the past fifty years and says that when she first became a resident the borough was a vast commons, corn fields and apple and peach orchards. She has never ridden in an automobile, nor has she ever been inside of a moving picture theatre. She passes her time in sewing and in reading the Bible.

  Her eyesight is remarkably good and her hearing is still acute. She says that since the old borough has grown into a city the noise is somewhat disturbing to her. She says that although she had her residence in the old borough for the past fifty years, yet during the most of that time she practically lived in the country, walking home every day after work and leaving early for work the next day.”1

[transcription ends]

The article is chock full of details one would never normally learn, and that I would not know without having read her newspaper. I am curious whether she ever did get to see a movie or ride in an automobile before she died.

A summary of facts stated or suggested in the newspaper article, in timeline format:

1914 article events timeline

Notes:

  1. This birth date conflicts with other sources, and it is unclear which is likeliest to be correct. Other dates given for her birth are 02 Jan 1829 (family record, plus her age in at least three Federal census entries suggest a birth year of 1829), 01 Jan 1830 (death certificate). A May 1835 date of birth from her 1900 census entry is an outlier and probably was not supplied by her.
  2. The place of birth stated in this article is new information. From prior research it was clear she married in Monmouth County, New Jersey, thus my inference is that she likely lived in Monmouth County at least for a time prior to her marriage. First marriages often occur in the brides’ hometown in this era.
  3. Residence of Chambersburg tracks with other records.
  4. The year of her husband’s death is incorrect in this account. Charles Carson actually died three years earlier, in 1863. Other blog posts that I have written on the subject of his death are here and here. The circumstances of his death as described are likely to be accurate and align with information discovered previously in other news articles.

1  “Mrs. Carson, at 84, Is Up Daily at 5,” Trenton (New Jersey) Evening Times, 08 April 1914, p. 5., col. 3; digital image, NewspaperArchive (https://newspaperarchive.com : last accessed 15 Sep 2018).

In the Name of God, Amen

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The 1807 will of Henry Bingaman of Garrard County, Kentucky

1807 Will of Henry Bingaman

My brother has been following up on a theory about the wives of Henry Bingaman and his son, also named Henry Bingaman. He thought, perhaps, that the wills of one or both of them may clear up the possible misattribution. He sent me an early draft of his research, laying out his argument. In it, he had an index reference to the will of the elder Henry, of Garrad County, Kentucky. Since I had the clerk’s copy of the will of Henry Bingman that he was seeking, I decided to transcribe it and post it here. Spelling and punctuation are retained and shown as it appeared in the original. The only alteration is one of formatting (i.e. the line length) so it reads better in a blog format.

In the name of God Amen
I Henry Bingaman of Garrard County and Com.th of Kentucky Being Sick and weak in Body but of Sound mind and memry Do make and ordain this my last will and testament that is to say first of all I give & recommend Soul in to the hands of God who gave it and my Body to the earth be Buried in a Christian like and Decent ^manner at the discretion of my Executors, Imprimises it is my will and I do order that in the first place all my Just Debts and funeral Expences be paid and Satisfied – – – – – – –

Item  I give and bequeath unto Maryann Bingamin my dearly beloved wife the use of the plantation that I now live on – together with all the household furniture including all the wool and flax during her natural life also one Cow & Calf two head of sheep (ewes) and two head of hogs and the use of ten apple trees During her life Item I give and bequeath unto my two sons John and Christian bingaman the plantation where on I now live to be equally divided Between them to them and their heirs forever I is my will that my two sons John and Christian Bingamin pay to all the rest of my heirs the just and full Sum of ten pounds current money of Kentucky on or before the expiration of eight years beginning at the Eldest paying ten pounds anually it is my will that all the rest of my property be sold and desposed of at the direction of my Executors I hereby revoke and disanul all former wills bequeaths, or deeds of this and no other to be my last will and testament nominating and appointing my two sons, John and Christian Bingamin my Executors

In witness whereof I have hereunto Set my hand and affixed my seal this 21st of November 1807 Signed Sealed and acknowledged in the presents of –

 

Robt Brank                                  Henry Bingamin {seal}
Isaiah Nickols
Robert Henry1

Preliminary analysis

  1. This transcribed will directly states that on 21 Nov 1807 (the day the will was drawn), Henry Bingaman’s wife was named Maryann. Undoubtedly she was living on that date, as he left her valuable personal property.
  2. He named two of his sons as executors, John and Christian Bingaman. We can make no assumptions about the ages of the sons since Kentucky law seemingly did allow for executors under the age of twenty-one.2
  3. Since Bingaman discussed the payment of ten pounds “current money of Kentucky” to unnamed heirs over the course of eight years, beginning with the eldest heir, it can be concluded that there were at least ten heirs – the two named children, plus the eight unnamed heirs. The oldest unnamed heir would have received their cash legacy first, followed by the second eldest receiving their legacy the following year, and so on. Presumably, these heirs were his children, but more research is needed to establish exactly who the heirs could have been.

Suggestions for further research

  1. All that we have here is the transcribed will of Henry Bingaman of Garrard County, Kentucky. Since the will would have been only one document recorded as part of the probate process, we should look for either the probate packet itself or further evidence of other court proceedings in extant county books or registers. Finding the loose papers, particularly receipts for legacies, would allow us to learn the names of the heirs.
  2. The will does not indicate when it was proved, or by whom, which would allow us to bracket a death date for Henry Bingaman. All we know for sure at this point is that he died sometime after he wrote the will, therefore after 21 Nov 1807.
  3. A closer look at Kentucky law is warranted, to learn who would have been considered an heir. Would it just be children, or were others entitled to inherit say, for example, the children of deceased children?

Sources:

1 Garrard County, Kentucky, Book of Wills, Volume C (1805-1809), p. 199, Will of Henry Bingaman; digital images, “Kentucky, Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989,” Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 4 Jan 2017), FHL microfilm 764,6424.

2 As a starting point, see the discussion at 333 regarding infant executors in C.A. Wickliffe, S. Turner and S.S. Nicholas, compilers, The Revised Statutes of Kentucky (Frankfort, Ky. : State Printer, 1852); digital images, Google Books (http://books.google.com : accessed 12 Aug 2018).