Applying to the Mayflower Society - Providing Documentation

In my last post, I mentioned that I had been researching my family for quite sometime.  I know some people spend a life time on this, but I have been working on it for about 6 years.  However, I will admit that I haven't been as diligent in conducting a lot of new research for the last few years.

I just felt it was time to put my "money where my mouth was" and prove that I am descended from Stephen Hopkins of the Mayflower.

I compiled all my research and just forwarded it the Ft Lauderdale Chapter of the Mayflower Society for review.   Here is the write up of information I sent to them (I have excluded the last 3 generations for privacy reason).  I have not included all the documents I sent to them, but if you would like to see any of them please contact me.

I will let you know what the next steps are when I hear back from them.

Lineage:

1.  Stephen Hopkins

2.  Giles Hopkins and Catherine Wheldon(Mayflower Families Vol 6 page 10 record 3)

3.  Deborah Hopkins and Josiah Cooke(Mayflower Families Vol 6 page 30 record 18)

4.  Deborah Cooke and Moses Godfrey(Mayflower Families Vol 6 page 113 record 88)

5.  David Godfrey and Priscilla Baker(Mayflower Families Vol 6 page 452 record 424)

6.  <dau.>  Godfrey and Peter Bishop(Mayflower Families Vol 6 page 453 record 424)

6.  Daughter Godfrey and Peter Bishop

Daughter Godfrey (her name is unknown) and Peter Bishop lived in New London, CT.  These records were lost in the fire of 1781 when Benedict Arnold burned the city during the Revolutionary War.

Daughter Godfrey and Peter Bishop had 4 children:

• Simeon Bishop (b. 1755)
• Elizabeth Bishop (est.1757 )
• Lemuel Bishop (b. 1758 )
• William Bishop (b. 5/5/1759)

Record of daughter Godfrey and Peter Bishop is captured in the “The Genealogy of the Bishop Family of Horton, NS” published in 1918(a).

7.  Elizabeth Bishop and Noah Fuller

Elizabeth Bishop was born in New London, CT probably about 1757.  These records were lost in the fire of 1781 when Benedict Arnold burned the city during the Revolutionary War.   Elizabeth Bishop married Noah Fuller on Nov 6 1777 (i).  The date of her death is unknown.  Proof of her relationship to David Godfrey is proven as she is mentioned as his granddaughter in his will (ii).

Noah Fuller was born in about 1750 likely in Salem, MA.  No records have been found of his birth.  His marriage to Elizabeth Bishop is shown in the Horton, Nova Scotia Township Book (i) which contains the towns early vital records.  Proof of his relationship to his father Noah Fuller is in Noah Fuller Sr. Will (iii).  There is no record of his death, but based on land transaction records it occurred after 1838 in Nova Scotia.

The Horton Township Record indicates that Noah and Elizabeth had at least 9 children: 

• Lemuel  (b. 2/4/1779)
• David (b. 4/13/1781)
• Rebeccah (b. 12/17/1783)
• Charlotte (b. 1/22/1786)
• Olive (b. 2/21/1790)
• Eliza (b. 7/4/1793)
• Mary (b. 12/6/1797)
• Noah (b. 4/2/1800)
• Benjamin (b. unlisted)

8.  David Fuller and Mary Cary

David Fuller was born Apr 13, 1781 in Horton, Nova Scotia (i).  David Fuller married Mary Cary on Sep 10, 1812 (iv) .  The date of his death is unknown.   

Mary Cary was born about 1791(v).  She died in Portland, Maine on Sept 14, 1873 (v).  She is proved to be David Fuller’s widow based on being referred to as David’s widow in death notice (vi).

The Horton Township Book record records five of David and Mary’s Children (iv): 

• Lavinia (b. 9/23/1813)
• Rebecca (b. 8/23/1815)
• Sephrona (b. 10/31/1817)
• Matilda (b. 11/4/1819)
• Martha (b. 10/18/1821) 

David and Mary had at least six additional children not recorded in the Horton Township Book records (it is also possible they moved to neighboring Windsor, but I cannot confirm):

• David Bishop Fuller (b. 10/17/1823)
• Benjamin (b. 12/1825)
• James (b. 9/25/1827)
• Theodore (b. 1829)
• Andrew (b. 10/7/1831)
• Collingwood (b. 1/6/1836)

 There was no legal requirement for births to be recorded in Canada at this time and Canadian records from this period are sometimes incomplete.

David and Marry lived in Horton (or the surrounding area) Nova Scotia.  They last appear in Nova Scotia in the Horton, Nova Scotia Census of 1838 (vii).  This shows David’s family as 13 total people.  This lines up well for what I believe I know about his family.  It indicates 5 women in the household above 14 years old.  This would include Mary (the mother) and 4 of the daughters.  The oldest daughter, Lavinia would have been 25 at this time and would likely be married and no longer be living at home.  I have not been able to find a record of Lavinia’s marriage to George Voye of Horton, Nova Scotia.  However, their first recorded child born is listed as Milward Voye born 4/14/1841.  In addition, the 1838 Horton Census indicates 1 male over age 14 presumably David (the father).  It indicates five males 14 years old or under (David Bishop, Benjamin, James, Theodore, Andrew, missing son) and two sons under age six (Collingwood and missing son).  It seems likely that there were two sons that must have died young.  Most of the David and Mary’s children are two years apart, but there is a five year gap between the birth of Andrew and Collingwood.      

David and Mary don’t appear in the next King’s County Census of Nova Scotia in 1851.   They left Nova Scotia and arrived prior to 1850.  The US Census from 1850 show them living with their sons:  James, Theodore, Andrew and Collingwood (Collingwood is listed by his middle name Elijah) (viii).  David and Mary must have arrived in Portland, Maine between 1840-1850, because they do not appear in the 1840 US Census.

Just in case there is any concern that the David and Mary Cary Fuller of Nova Scotia are not the same David and Mary Cary Fuller of Portland, Maine.  I have included several of their sons’ death records and daughter’s death record which indicate their birth in Horton, Nova Scotia and their parent’s names as David Fuller and Mary Cary.  In addition the fact that David Bishop Fuller’s middle name is “Bishop” is obviously referring to his grandmother’s family the Bishops.

·        David Bishop Fuller – Death 6/11/1901 (ix)  (Lists father are David Fuller and Mother as Mary Cary and birthplace as Horton, Nova Scotia.  Maine Death Record – June 11, 1901 – Proof of David Bishop Fuller’s middle name being “Bishop” comes from his son, William S. Fuller’s death record from 9/30/1916 (x) which states his father’s full name of David Bishop Fuller.

·        Andrew Hanley Fuller – Death 9/19/1914 (xi) Obituary lists Andrew’s birthplace as Horton, Nova Scotia and living in Portland, Maine

·        Benjamin Fuller – Death 12/2/1911 (xii) (Lists father as David Fuller and Mother as Mary Cary and place of birth as Nova Scotia)

·        Matilda Fuller Marine – Death 10/3/1901 (xiii) Matilda Fuller married Thomas Marine while living in Nova Scotia and moved to Standish, Maine prior to 1900.  (Lists father as David Fuller and Mother as Mary Cary and place of birth as Nova Scotia)

9.  James Henry Fuller and Margaret Armstrong O’Hagen

James Henry Fuller was born Sept 12, 1827 in Horton or Windsor, Nova Scotia (xiv).  He married Margaret Armstrong O’Hagen (Margaret was married prior to this marriage to Patrick O’Hagen) on Dec 31, 1882 (xv),  James Fuller died on Dec 21, 1917 at Sailor’s Snug Harbor on Staten Island, NY (xvi).  I have provided his death certificate from Sailor’s Snug Harbor and his application to live there.  Sailor’s Snug Harbor was an old age home for sailors.  He was probably too old to live on his own and his daughter was quite young.  The home was for American sailor’s which may be why he stated he was born in Eastport, Maine (which is close to the Canadian border).  We know this is the same James Fuller because it is the same exact birth date, his daughter is named Elizabeth in the document and on his daughter, Elizabeth’s marriage record it indicates that her father lives in New York (xviii).  

James and Margaret had one child together: 

·        Elizabeth Margaret Fuller  (b. 2/11/1886)

James wife, Margaret Armstrong O’Hagen Fuller was born about 1842 in Maine.  She died on Dec 23, 1891 (xvii)

10.  Elizabeth Margaret Fuller and Robert Edward Armstrong

Elizabeth Margaret Fuller was born on Feb 11, 1886 in Portland, Maine (xix).  She married Robert Edward Armstrong on Oct 22, 1910 (xviii).  Elizabeth died on Sep 23, 1971(xx).

Robert Armstrong was born on Apr 24, 1880 in Cape Elizabeth, Maine(xxi).  Robert Edward died Mar 31, 1963 in Cape Elizabeth, Maine (xxii).

Robert and Elizabeth had 4 children: 

·        Shirley (b. 7/22/1912)

·        Ruth  (b. 2/20/1914)

·        Marion  (b. 5/23/1917)

·        Robert  (b. 4/16/1920)

(a)         The Genealogy of the Bishop Family of Horton, NS pg. 9-10 published 1918

(i)               Horton Township Book, Horton, Nova Scotia  - Noah Fuller and Elizabeth Bishop Record

(ii)              David Godfrey’s Will

(iii)            Noah Fuller Sr. Will

(iv)            Horton Township Book, Horton, Nova Scotia – David Fuller and Mary Cary Record

(v)             Mary Cary Fuller Maine Death Record – Sept 14, 1873

(vi)            Mary Cary Fuller Death Notice, appeared Daily Eastern Argus Newspaper (Portland, Maine), Sept 16, 1873

(vii)           1838 Kings County Census – Horton Township

(viii)         US Census 1850 Portland, Maine

(ix)            David Bishop Fuller Maine Death Record – June 11, 1901

(x)             William S. Fuller Maine Death Record – Sept 30, 1916

(xi)            Andrew Hanley Fuller Obit – Sept 19, 1914

(xii)           Benjamin Fuller Maine Death Record – Dec 12,1911

(xiii)         Matilda Fuller Marine Maine Death Record – Oct 3, 1901

(xiv)         US Naturalization Record (F460) of James Fuller, Sept 4, 1872

(xv)          Maine, Marriage Records – James Fuller and Margaret Armstrong O’Hagen - Dec 31, 1882

(xvi)         James Fuller Death Certificate (Sailor’s Snug Harbor) and Application to Sailor’s Snug Harbor – Dec 21, 1917

(xvii)        Maine, Death Record – Margaret Armstrong O’Hagen Fuller - Dec 23, 1891

(xviii)      Maine, Birth Record  - Elizabeth Fuller – Feb 11, 1886

(xix)         Maine, Marriage Record - Elizabeth Fuller ad Robert Armstrong – Oct 22, 1910

(xx)          Elizabeth Armstrong Obituary, Portland Press Herald Newspaper (Portland, Maine), Sept 24, 1971

(xxi)         Maine, Birth Record – Robert Armstrong - Apr 24, 1880

(xxii)        Robert Armstrong Obituary – Portland Press Herald Newspaper (Portland, Maine) , Apr 2, 1963

Will Wednesday - Noah Fuller (1712-1774)

Noah Fuller was my 5th great grandfather.  He was born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1712.  He moved from Salem to Lebanon, CT probably between 174-1750.  He was then one of the original "New England Planter" settlers to Horton, Nova Scotia.

Here is a copy of his will which was proved on September 16, 1774.  Oh, and please don't judge me on the lack of punctuation and poor spelling.  The run on sentences are from the original document.

In the name of god, Amen, the ninetieth day of May 1774 being of sound mind and memory thanks be to almighty God therefore and calling to mind the uncertain state of this transitory life and that all flesh must yields unto death when it shall please god to call do make ordain and declare this my last will and testament  in manner and form following: 

First, I give and bequeath my soul to God who gave it and my body to the ground to be decently buried and as to my worldly goods, chattels and estate, I do order and dispose in the manner following, that is to say, first I will that all my just debts should be paid and satisfied ---- 

Item     I give and bequeath unto my well beloved wife the use and improvement of the west half of my dwelling house.  The use of a cow and the use & improvement of my breeding mare and one third part of the improvement of all my real estate so long as she continues a widow and the use of all the household goods 

Item     I give to my beloved son Elisha four acres and three quarters of dyke land at the west end of the Grand Pre, joining John Whitney dyke land  --- and to my son Timothy seventy acres of my second division farm lot number six – 

Also, I give to my son Noah my first division dike lot. 

I also will and ordain that my four daughters viz Elishiar, Priscilla, and Sarah and Lucy shall have five pounds each out of my estate to be paid them when Lucy the youngest of them shall arrive to the age of eighteen years and all the household goods, the cow and mare to be equally divided between them when their mother shall come with them ---- 

I also will to my son Noah my working open [lands?] and my sucking goat and three sheep and three swine six suckling pigs  --- 

The remainder of all my estate both real and personal, I will and ordain to be equally divided between Elisha and Noah excepting my last or third division which Timothy is to have his equal proportion it is also my Will that my sons Elisha and Noah shall pay the five pounds a piece to their four sisters equally between them ---- 

I also will an ordain my sons Elisha and Noah shall be executors to this my last will and testament, in witness hereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal 

SignedNoah Fuller 

In the presence of
Joseph WoodworthSamuel Denison 
Amos Rathbun 

Some may wonder why I have been posting so many wills to my blog.  I find them a good source of information and many of them don't seem to exist anywhere else.  

Just another great document to add to your genealogy research that I wanted to share with all my relatives: known and unknown.

Black Sheep Sunday - Elizabeth Fuller's Assault on Judah Treche

Sometimes reading some historical documents about my ancestors, I get a feeling like it could be an 18th century version of Jerry Springer.  The record of Elizabeth Fuller's assault on Judah Treche is one of those instances.  

Elizabeth Fuller was the wife of Timothy Fuller, my 4th great grand uncle.  She was charged with beating Judah Treche with a stick.

Here is the disposition of Judah Treche.

Kings County 

The deposition, examination and complaint of Judah Treche of Horton in said county of Kings, who being duly examined and sworn…… 

Saith, that on the second day of March, Elizabeth Fuller,wife of Timothy Fuller of Horton aforesaid did and dishonestly assault this deponent at the door of the house of Noah Fuller in Horton and strike her many blows with a stick or club, saying “I will give you one good licking you damned bitch,” by which assault and blows this deponent says she is much bruised and hurt, and further this deponent saith not…… 

Sworn this day 4^th day of March 1776 before me…..Nathan Dewolf

Signed by Judah Treche 

It is unfortunate that the records of this event don't include any REASON why she beat Judah.  Call my cynical, but I would expect that Elizabeth felt (real or imagined) that Judah had affection for or design on her husband Timothy Fuller.  I can't think of another reason which would have caused her to react so violently without provocation on that day.

It is interesting what you find, when you dig into the family history.

Black Sheep Sunday: Noah Fuller’s illegitimate Child

I feel like I should start a blog series called “Ancestors Behaving Badly”.

While doing some research of my ancestors from Horton, Nova Scotia, I came upon records indicating that Noah Fuller (Born: 1750), my 4^th great grandfather, was charged with an “Order of Filiation”.

I was unfamiliar with the term, but learned that it is commonly a legal action to connect the birth father with an illegitimate child and force the parent to pay for the child's support.

I obtained a copy of the document and here is a transcription.

Kings County 

The order of Lebbeus Harris and Nathan Dewolf esquires, two of his Majesty’s Justices of the Peace in for the said county  and both residing in Horton near to the township of Cornwallis in the said county, made the fourth day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy eight [1778] in [the] morning a female bastard child, lately born in the township of Cornwallis aforesaid, of the body of Abigail Pierse [I am unsure it is Pierfe or Pierse due to the way “S” was written at this time] singlewoman.

Whereas it hath appeared unto us the said Justices as well upon the complaint of Joseph Pierse Esq. and Mr. James Fillis  principle inhabitants of the said township of Horton, as upon the oath of the said Abigail Pierse that she the said Abigail Pierse on the fifth day of April, was delivered of a female bastard child at Cornwallis aforesaid in the said county, and that the said child likely to be chargeable to the said township of Horton, and further that Noah Fuller of Horton in the said county yeoman did beget the said bastard child in the body of her the said Abigail Pierse, and whereas the said Noah Fuller hath appeared before us, in pursuance of our summons for that purpose and hath not showed any sufficient cause why he the said Noah Fuller shall not be the father of the said bastard child :  We therefore upon examination of the cause and circumstances of the [unknown word], as will upon the oath of the said Abigail Pierse as otherwise do hereby judge him the said Noah Fuller to be the reputed father of the said bastard child…… 

And thereupon we do order, as well for the better belief of the said township of Horton, as for the sustententation and relief of the said bastard child, that the said Noah Fuller shall and do forthwith, upon notice of this our order pay or cause to be paid to the overseer of the poor of the said township of Horton or the same of the sum of four pounds…….for and towards the lying in the said Abigail Pierse and the maintenance of the said bastard child to the time of making this our order….. 

And we do hereby also further order, that the said Noah Fuller shall likewise pay or cause to be paid to the overseers of the poor of the said township of Horton the sum of three shillings weekly every week from this present time for and towards the keeping sustenation and maintenance of the said bastard child, for and during so long time as the said bastard child shall be chargeable to the said township of Horton…. 

And we do further order the said Abigail Pierse shall also pay or cause to be paid to the said overseer of the poor of the said township of Horton for the time being, or to some one of them the sum of three shillings…..

Weekly every week so long as the said bastard child shall be chargeable to said township of Horton, in case she shall not nurse and take care of the said child herself….

It is unfortunate that the order doesn’t give us any insight into the circumstances of Abigail and Noah’s relationship.   Noah was married to his wife, Elizabeth Bishop on November 6, 1777.  So it would appear that Abigail become pregnant by Noah prior to his wedding to Elizabeth Bishop.  Noah and Elizabeth stayed married and had at least 9 children together.

My understanding that the governments main concern in the event of an illegitimate child was making sure that a father was found to prevent the local government from the burden of paying for the child's care.

Being about 200 years removed from the event, I am intrigued about what happened to Abigail and Noah’s daughter.  The child is never named in the order.  Did she have the last name Fuller or keep the name Pierfe/Pierse?  How old was Abigail when she gave birth?  Did she ever marry?  I have not been able to find anything about her or her mother. 

If you have the belief that “these types of things” didn’t happen back in the “good old days”, it just goes to show that things may have not been quite so different than they are today. 

Wisdom Wednesday - Can a Published Genealogy Be Wrong?

The short answer is "of course".


Genealogies are written by people and people make mistakes. I have made more than a few, myself. But, I will say that once information is published in a book or genealogical research paper, they become part of the "conventional wisdom" and are treated as established fact in the genealogy of those individuals.  


My personal experience is that the quantity and quality of evidence needed to alter what is accepted fact after a genealogy is published becomes quite a challenge. In some cases, the amount of evidence needed to overcome the current accepted belief greatly exceeds the original evidence used to create the initial assumptions.  

The case that impacts me is about my ancestors David Fuller (Born:  1781, Horton, Nova Scotia) and his wife Mary. David Fuller was the son of Noah Fuller Jr (Born: 1750, Salem, MA). and grandson of Noah Fuller (Born: 1712, Salem, MA).  Noah Fuller Sr. was one of the original settlers to Horton, Nova Scotia. These settlers are known as New England Planters. More about them in future posts.


David Fuller, wife and sons removed from Horton, Nova Scotia and moved to Portland, Maine between 1840-1850.


There is not a lot of expert genealogical interest in David Fuller. He was not a famous figure nor was he a person of historical significance....at least not that I have uncovered. But according to my research he is my 3rd great grandfather, which makes him important to me.  However, if I believed what has been written in public genealogy records, then it is unlikely that he could be my ancestor.

The Conventional Wisdom


It has been asserted that David Fuller  married a woman named Mary Curry (Born:  July 11, 1795) daughter of Richard Curry and Rachel Bacon. Both David Fuller and Mary Curry were born in Horton, Nova Scotia. They were married in Grand Pre, NS on Sept 10, 1812. They had 5 daughters all born in Horton:  Lavinia, Rebecca, Sephrona, Matilda and Martha.  No sons.


It has been published that Mary Curry died in 1822, but there is no record of when or where David Fuller died or if he had any further children.


My Disagreement


My fundamental disagreement with this information is that I don't believe that David Fuller married Mary Curry. I believe he married a different woman all together. A woman named Mary Cary.  There is a good reason for this. When I review the original Horton Township Record book for Horton, Nova Scotia (which contains the birth, marriage and death information recorded for the town), it records that David Fuller married Mary Cary.  


My other challenge is that I believe I am descended from David and Mary's son, James Henry Fuller. But there is no record of him in the Horton Township Record book.


How the Conventional Wisdom became the Conventional Wisdom


Horton, Nova Scotia was a very small settlement. Only 100 or so families settled there in the early 1760s. It was typical that the families intermarried. So it is reasonable to believe that David's wife would be to one of the families already living in Horton at the time.


The Horton Township Book record indicates he married Mary Cary, but there wasn't a "Cary" family recorded as living in Horton, Nova Scotia at the time. The only name that was close was Mary Curry. She would have been about the right age. While it clearly does not say "Curry" in the Horton Township Book, this is explained by the general poor spelling and variations of how names were spelled at that time.  


In addition, Mary Curry was said to have died in 1822. All of the children recorded in the Horton Township Book are all born prior to 1822.


Anyone who has spent anytime working on family research knows that sometimes you have to make some assumptions to connect the dots between certain ancestors. In the absence of specific proof you have to make assumptions and make a leap of faith that they are correct.  


So as assumptions go, I can see why these were made and they do make an awful lot of sense.


However, the preponderance of the evidence I have uncovered indicate that David Fuller never married Mary Curry and that he did, in fact, marry Mary Cary.


The Supporting Evidence


The biggest leap of faith I had to take was that the David and Mary Fuller of Portland, Maine where the same David and Mary Fuller of Horton, Nova Scotia. There is no border crossing records that I have uncovered which show the immigration of the David and Mary Fuller or any of their sons.  


The second leap of faith I had to make was that even with no record of any sons in the Horton Township Book, that they did in fact have 6 sons named, David B., Benjamin W., James H., Theodore, Andrew H., and Colllingwood.


These do sound like pretty major assumptions, but don't judge too quickly. I do have overwhelming evidence to support them.


David. Mary and Sons of Portland Maine were from Horton, Nova Scotia


The US Census from 1850 shows that David, Mary, James, Theodore, Andrew and Collingwood all living together in Portland, Maine. In addition, it indicates that David and his sons were all born in Nova Scotia. It states that Mary was born in Massachusetts....which works, because this might help explain why her family wasn't included in the Horton Township Book.


The US Census from 1860 for Portland, Maine shows Mary Fuller living with Benjamin W Fuller and his family including Benjamin's brother James H.  Fuller.  David Fuller died somewhere between 1857-1860. I have not found his death record.


Mary Fuller died in Portland, Maine on Sept 16, 1873. I found both her death record and death notice in the paper which indicates that she was the Mary Fuller married to David Fuller.


Ok, So David and Mary and these sons were from Nova Scotia, but how do I prove that they are from Horton, NS?

My records show that 4 of the 6 sons became naturalized citizens. Two of the son's records show that they were born in "Norton, NS" and two show "Windsor, NS". Since there wasn't a "Norton, NS", we can discount this as an error. I am confident about this as Andrew H Fuller's naturalization says he is from "Norton, NS", but his obituary states he was born in "Horton, NS". In addition, David B. Fuller's death record states he was from Horton, Kings Co, NS


This is particularly important as Horton, NS was a small settlement. There were several Fuller families, but only one David Fuller who was the son of Noah Fuller Jr. and Elizabeth Bishop.  


David and Mary had Additional Children In Addition to Those Captured in the Township Book


Proving that David B. Fuller and the other men were born in Horton and Windsor, Nova Scotia doesn't prove that their parents, David and Mary Fuller are THE David and Mary Fuller from Horton, NS which are descended from Noah Fuller the original New England Planter.  


Which is why I needed to find some records which showed their mother's maiden name. I think you will agree that there COULDN'T have been two separate Fuller families living in Horton, NS which included a David Fuller and a Mary Cary, right?


I found death records for each of the Fuller sons (which was quite a feat in and of itself). Only 3 of the records included the names of each man's parents. ALL of those records listed the father as David Fuller and the mother as Mary Cary!


In addition, the 1838 Kings County Census records for Horton Township shows that David Fuller had a household of 13 people . The breakdown of ages of males and females lines up well to the fact that David and Mary had a total of 11 children that I have uncovered.  


At the time of the census, David and Mary's children would have been the following ages:

Lavinia - 25
Rebecca - 23
Sephrona - 21
Matilda - 19
Martha - 17
David B - 15
Benjamin W -13
James H - 11
Theodore - 9
Andrew H - 7
Collingwood - 2


This doesn't translates perfectly to the census, but very closely and would depend on when in the year the census was conducted. Also, I can't confirm, but it seems likely that either Lavinia or Rebecca would have been married by 1838 and judging from the time that lapsed between Andrew H and Collingwood's birth it is likely that there may have been another son who was born, but died young.


Connecting David and Mary's Daughters from Horton, NS to David and Mary Cary of Portland, Maine


By now, I hope that you can see that I have made a strong case that David and Mary Fuller moved to Portland, Maine and they did have 6 sons which were not recorded in the Horton Township Books.  

The last missing piece is trying to connect any of David and Mary's known daughters to my David and Mary Fuller or any of their brothers. This has proved to be very challenging!!  Matilda Fuller married Thomas Marine/Morine.  They lived in Kings County, NS, until they moved to Standish, Maine somewhere between 1880-1900. I have found a death record for Matilda Marine which records her father and mother as David Fuller and Mary Cary!!  


One more fact: I recently found out that David B. Fuller's middle name was "Bishop". This is significant because David Fuller Sr's father Noah Fuller was married to Elizabeth Bishop. The fact that David was given the middle name of the family name "Bishop" would be another compelling fact.


For me that was the final piece.  


Through a preponderance of the evidence, I think I have very convincingly proven that David and Mary Fuller of Portland, ME and David and Mary Fuller of Horton, Nova Scotia are one and the same, and they had a total of at least 11 children, 5 daughters recorded in the Horton Township book and had 6 sons who were not recorded.


But....


When presenting this overwhelmingly strong argument, I am ALWAYS told, "but David Fuller married Mary Curry...I read it in the History of Kings, Co or other published genealogy.  Maybe David Fuller remarried after Mary Curry died....these could be the children of his second wife"!!


Ughh!!


It has been very difficult to get anyone to take my evidence seriously,  because they feel like that the fact that Mary Curry married David Fuller is an established fact.   


Which leads to my next post:  Mary Curry's TRUE husband!