September 26, 2023
Introduction: In this article, Melissa Davenport Berry continues with stories she uncovered about pioneer settlers she found in an old photo. Melissa is a genealogist who has a blog, AnceStory Archives, and a Facebook group, New England Family Genealogy and History.
In today’s article, I continue with the New England scions who settled McLean County, Illinois. Like their hardy ancestors, these pioneers braved the elements and paved a new frontier.
The fourth man standing in the back row from the left is Enos Hale Farnsworth (1825-1910), son of Enos Charles Farnsworth and Jane Frances Hale.
I found a mortuary notice for Enos Charles published in the Edwardsville Spectator on 31 August 1824. He died before his son was born.
This notice reported:
Died – Lately, in Lincoln County, Missouri, Mr. Enos Farnsworth, formerly of Woodstock, Vt.
Genealogy Tip: since this mortuary notice said Enos Charles was “formerly of Woodstock, Vt.,” there is a good chance Vermont newspapers also reported his death. I searched newspapers in the Woodstock area, and found another mortuary notice for Enos Charles from a newspaper in nearby Windsor, Vermont.
This notice reported:
Died – In Lincoln County, Missouri, Mr. Enos Farnsworth, Printer, formerly of Windsor, aged about 36.
This notice gives us a bit more information about Enos Charles. For one thing, we learn he was a printer. We also learn his approximate age when he died. Finally, one notice said he was “formerly of Woodstock” and the other said he was “formerly of Windsor,” so further research is needed to determine if he lived in one Vermont town or the other, or perhaps both.
The Farnsworth line who helped settle Mclean, Illinois, can be traced back to their progenitor Matthias Farnsworth of Groton, Massachusetts.
Enos Charles married into the Hale line that can be traced back to: Revolutionary War patriot Samuel Hale; Newbury, Massachusetts, settlers Richard Dole, James Noyes, Stephen Greenleaf, Tristram Coffin and Dionis Stevens; Thomas Putnam of Salem, Massachusetts; and George Carr of Salisbury, Massachusetts.
Enos Charles also had a daughter, Sarah Ann Farnsworth (1822-1898), who lived in McLean County, Illinois, with her husband, William Augustus Verry (1819-1898), son of William Coddington Verry and Lucinda Horon, and left descendants.
William Verry was a direct descendant of Mayflower passengers Francis Cooke, Hester Mathieu, and Stephen Hopkins – and to Massachusetts Bay Colony families such as Carpenter, Sutton, Merrick, Bangs, Kingsbury, Danforth, and Allen.
Enos Hale Farnsworth married Sarah Ann Longworth (1831-1897), daughter of John Longworth and Prudence Parson Edwards. Her ancestors include the Massachusetts settler family lines of Cross, Perkins, Boardman, Treadwell, Parker, Jewett, Woodbury, Dodge, and West.
According to sources, Enos Hale led a colorful life in his early years. He made a few trips to the Great Lakes as a sailor, and had a stint in Canada to learn farming.
In December of 1844 he came to Illinois, and for six years he worked on a farm in Tazewell County. He made an overland trip to California with an ox team during the gold excitement in that state, leaving Armington, Illinois, on 18 March 1850, and arriving on the West Coast on the 9th of the following September.
He went to work in the mines at Placerville, California, and for over a year he engaged in mining in that state with fair success. He returned to his home in Illinois via ship by way of the Isthmus of Panama, Kingston, Jamaica, the West Indies, and New York, finally arriving in McLean County in November 1851.
He used the money he made in gold and invested it in property. He had a prosperous career as a farmer and reared four children. I found an 1880 census in GenealogyBank listing Enos, his wife Sarah and their children.
Children born to Enos and Sarah:
- Clara Ann Farnsworth (1853-1914) married Charles Griffin Pumphrey (1846-1936), son of Robinson Pumphrey and Ann Griffin, and left descendants.
- Frank Alan Farnsworth Sr. (1861-1941) married Jessie Rosali Huff. He married 2nd Malinda Catherine Dowdy (1869-1952), with whom he had 12 children – and they all lived to adulthood except one son. Malinda was born to Johnson William Dowdy and Juliet Catherine Easley. She was a direct descendant of Jamestown settlers William Farrar, William Byrd, John Woodson, and William Parker.
- Terah Enos Farnsworth (1865-1897) married Effie Mary Kinsey (1867-1932), daughter of Samuel Bevan Kinsey and Millicent Frances Stephens. They had two daughters. After Terah’s death Effie married 2nd Isaac Willard S. Van Ness. Terah was named after his uncle Terah Bennett Farnsworth, a veteran of the Black Hawk War who owned farmland in Jo Daviess, Illinois, with George Furgeson and Peter Story.
- Sarah Frances “Fanny” Farnsworth (1869-1935) married Alman Henry Linebarger, son of Henry D. Linebarger and Jane Phillips. Sarah and Alman’s son Herbert Russell Linebarger (1897-1979) married Margaret Elizabeth Stewart, leaving descendants.
Frank Alan Farnsworth Sr. and his second wife Malinda’s 11 children who lived to adulthood:
- Jessie Myrtle Farnsworth married Robert Washington Vance
- William Enos Farnsworth married Alta Florence Scott
- Mildred Ann Farnsworth married Frank Fisk Wakefield
- Frank Alan Farnsworth Jr. married Imogene Gladys Duncan
- John Dwight Farnsworth married Carrie Roberts Church and 2nd Bessie G. Ackerson
- James Owen Farnsworth married Cora Johnson
- Wilbur Ray Farnsworth married Lula Frances Johnson and 2nd Hazel Harris
- Cecil Cline Farnsworth married Clara Belle Holland
- Ivan Joseph Farnsworth married Melva Ellen May and 2nd Mildred Robison
- Ida Catharine Farnsworth married Franklin Roy Brewer
- “Minnie” Marguerite Farnsworth married William Tibbs
Explore over 330 years of newspapers and historical records in GenealogyBank. Discover your family story! Start a 7-Day Free Trial
Note on the header image: Enos Hale Farnsworth. Credit: Mark Douglas Stephenson of New Hampshire.
Related Article:
