Genealogy Wanderings - Harden

Genealogy research is so different today than when I first started almost 20 years ago.  I think that I have it so much easier than those who first started researching before the age of computers and the internet.  I can remember the struggles that I used to have to find information that is now at my fingertips.  There are more and more databases available at places like Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.com – and I have learned a lot of things that spur me forward.  I am going to try and write a few blogs about some of these curious things that I have found of late.

Some pictures that a cousin took for me of Middleburgh Cemetery, in NY

My fourth great grandfather was Ebenezer Gallup.  He was born in 25 Sep 1795 in Middleburgh, Schoharie Co., NY and died there on 8 Oct 1865.  He is buried there at Middleburgh Cemetery with his wife, Susan Harden.  Ebenezer’s parent’s died when he was quite young (Father Silas Gallup b. 9 Mar 1749 d. 28 Oct 1796 and mother Sarah Gallup b. 29 Dec 1751 d. 18 Aug 1799 see Silas Gallup & Sarah Gallup in NY) and based on family stories, I know that he was raised by his sister Silence Gallup Brewster (See Silence Gallup Brewster and Silence Gallup Brewster – Part 2 – A Further Exploration)  I have always found his family interesting.  I wonder why his parents died…I am sure it was some disease and somehow he escaped it.  Was there something genetic in the family that caused five of the ten children to die young?  Ebenezer’s siblings Silas Gallup Jr b. 1782 d. 1783, Lois Gallup b. 1784 d. 1784, Hannah Gallup b. 1785 d. 1785, and Silas Gallup Jr b. 1789 d. 1790 all died very young.  Perhaps there were more siblings between Eli b. 11 Feb 1791 d. 4 Apr 1882 and Ebenezer b. 1795 or perhaps Ebenezer was a surprise.  His mother, Sarah Gallup, would have been 45 years old.  Sometime between 1791 and 1795 the Gallup family moved to New York.  I know there was a family group of cousins and brothers who moved their families and I wish I knew what prompted them to move from Connecticut to New York.  I can guess…but I don’t know if I will ever know.

Susan Harden hasn’t been an easy person to search.  She was born 8 Jul 1808 in Duanesburg, Schenectady Co., NY and died 9 Nov 1884 in Middleburgh, Schoharie Co., NY. Susan married Ebenezer Gallup on 19 Nov 1826 in Middleburgh, NY.  Since she died as late as 1884, I spent the big money and got her death certificate (I think the NY death certificates are $27 – which are quite expensive and took the full 8 weeks to receive it)  From that I learned that her parents James Harden and Margaret.  I have found a James Harden who was born in 1788 in Duanesburg, NY and died in 1849 in Tioga, NY.  I think that he is the likely father of Susan and according to links in Ancestry to “The New England Historical & Genealogical Register” he is the son of James Harden b. 1755 VT d. 27 Apr 1828 Schenectady Co., NY and Susannah Manard b.  1764 d. 4 Mar 1826.  They were both buried at Tripp Cemetery in Schenectady, NY.  Finding that little bit of information made me wonder what the significance of the Tripp family was to this James and Susannah.  It is a family name that I am familiar with as it is one of my ancestors on my Gage family.

So my genealogical wanderings have now taken me to completely different place.  I did a search on Find A Grave to see what other Harden’s were buried in Tripp Cemetery.  There I find a Benjamin Harden who was a listed son I had found for James Harden and his wife Susannah.  This Benjamin Harden turned out to marry a Phebe Tripp, so that explains why they are buried in that cemetery.  Only problem is now I have to figure how Phebe Tripp fits in.  

So, as you can see, these new records take you on completely different avenues to search.  I am not sure that James Harden and Susannah Manard are my 4^th great grandmother’s grandparents – but it seems likely.  The biggest lesson that I have learned while doing genealogy is that the family patterns are important, and don’t be surprised to see your family lines mixing together a little too closely for comfort