Wedding Wednesday ~ Gordon Pyle and Zene Montgomery

The wedding announcement from the October 15, 1926 New York Times for my great uncle Gordon Pyle and his bride, Zene Montgomery. (Courtesy GenealogyBank.)

My grandfather, Charles Pyle, was his best man and the guests included four of Gordon's five siblings:
James McAlpin Pyle (and his wife), David Pyle (and his wife), Sara Smart (and her husband), and my grandparents, Charles and Elizabeth Pyle. I have not done much research on the Montgomery family, but it looks like two of Zene's brothers were in attendance.

Military Monday ~ Great Uncle Gordon McAlpin Pyle

My paternal grandfather, Charles McAlpin Pyle, was the second youngest of six children of James Tolman Pyle and Frances Adelaide McAlpin. The youngest of their children was Gordon McAlpin Pyle, born August 15, 1901, in Morristown, New Jersey.

He grew up in a very comfortable life: his parents owned a home at 673 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan and a country estate, Hurstmont, in Morris County, New Jersey.

He became a well-known yachtsman and amateur aviator. He married Zene Montgomery on October 14, 1926. They had one daughter, Zene Adelia Pyle, born in 1937 in England. It looks like they enjoyed traveling; most of the records I find for them are 1920's and 1930's passenger lists from around the world.

During World War II, Gordon served as a pilot in the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), a volunteer organization founded in December 1941. From their website: "Thousands of volunteer members answered America's call to national service and sacrifice by accepting and performing critical wartime missions."

Great Uncle Gordon made the ultimate sacrifice serving in the CAP. His plane disappeared on Monday, October 18, 1943, while on patrol off New York. By that Friday, October 23, the search had been called off.

Saturday, October 23, 1943, Springfield (MA) Republican, p. 7; GenealogyBank.com

Saturday, October 23, 1943, Greensboro (NC) Record, p. 7; GenealogyBank.com

Kentucky ~ Looking for a Crack in the Brick Wall

As I noted in my recent Surname Saturday post about the Ashby line, I didn't know much about my third great-grandparents, Stephen Ashby (about 1805 - May 1829) and Pamela (Permelia) Christian (dates unknown) until I found The Ashby Book, Vol. 1: Descendants of Captain Thomas Ashby of Virginia by Lee Fleming Reese, published in 1976.

As I noted, this book shares transcriptions of several court records from the 1830's which list the children of Stephen Ashby, Jr. and his widow, Pamelia Ashby: Malinda Ashby, Benjamin C. Ashby, Napoleon B. Ashby, and Daniel M. Ashby. These four children were born in the 1820's (between the marriage of Stephen and Pamelia in 1820 and his death in May 1829).

In one court record there is reference that "his widow Pamelia has intermarried with James Hall."

With this information, I explored census records on Ancestry.com to see what else I could find out about my third great-grandmother, Pamela / Pamelia / Permelia, and her family.

In 1830, there is an Amelia Ashby with children of approximately the correct age, as well as four slaves (as indicated in one of the court records) living in Hopkins County, Kentucky. This might be the widow Permelia Ashby, but I can't be sure. There is a James Hall in Barren County, Kentucky in 1830, with a household of one adult male the right age for James (40-50), five other whites (his children?) between ages 5-20, and seven slaves.

~~~~~~~

In 1840, I found Jas. Hall in Barren County, Kentucky.

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Ashby and Hall Half Brothers

I have been researching my Ashby line (see Surname Saturday ~ Ashby) and I found a few Find A Grave memorials for some of my Kentucky ancestors.

The biggest find was at small Hall-Harlow Cemetery in Glasgow, Barren County, Kentucky: a memorial for Benjamin C. Ashby (1822-1848), my 3rd great-uncle.

Imagine my surprise when my photo request was almost immediately fulfilled...

Photo courtesy of Martha and Daine Harrison; used with their permission.
Thank you to Find A Grave volunteer Laura J. Stewart for setting up the memorials
and obtaining the permission to share this photograph on my blog.

and there was another name on Benjamin Ashby's stone. Gilbert C. Hall (1835-1850) was a half-brother to Benjamin. Their mother was Permelia (Christian) (Ashby) Hall, my third great-grandmother.

Left side:

Benjamin C.
Son of Stephen &
Pemelia Ashby
Born
Oct. 12, 1822
Died
Nov. 8, 1848

Right side:

Gilbert C.
Son of
James &
Pemelia Hall
Born
March 3, 1835
Died
August 15, 1850

Military Monday ~ Captain Stephen Ashby

My 5th great-grandfather, Stephen Ashby, served as Captain in the Revolutionary War. The DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) online database shows Captain Stephen Ashby was born circa 1725 (though other records indicate he was born circa 1710) in Virginia. He died July 25, 1797, in Mercer County, Kentucky. His service is sourced and summarized by the DAR as follows:

Service Source: NARA, M881, COMP MIL SER RECS, ROLLS #977, 1074; SANCHEZ-SAAVEDRA, A GUIDE TO VA MIL ORGS IN THE AM REV, P 67; BLWT 2420-300

Service Description: 1) 3RD CO, 12TH & 8TH VA REGTS, 3RD VA BRIGADE, COL JAMES WOOD, BRIG GEN CHARLES SCOTT

On Fold3, I found Captain Stephen Ashby in the Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War. He was commissioned a captain on September 9, 1776, serving under Colonel James Wood of Virginia in the 12th Virginia Regiment, which was re-designated the 8th Virginia Regiment in September 1778, at which time Captain Ashby retired from service.

The card below shows when he was appointed a Captain.

Stephen Ashby
Appears with the rank of Capt. on a
List
under the following heading:
"An Arrangement of the Officers belonging to
the 12th Virginia Regiment, with the time their
several Commissions Ouught to bear Date"
(Revolutionary War.)
List dated
9 Septem 1776
Remarks: * * * By an Ordnance of the
Convention of Virginia which Passed in
June 1776, a Company consisting of a
Captain Lieutenant and Ensign three Ser-
geants and fifty Rank and file, were Ordered
to be raised for the Protection of the Frontier,
and to be stationed at the mouth of Wheeling
on the Ohio, with Direction for the Committee
of Hampshire to nominate the officers; who
elected Stephen Ashby Captain, Ben-
jamin Casey Lieutenant and Richard
Routt Ensign.


Additionally, in the Revolutionary War Pension files at Fold3, I found handwritten correspondence from 1847 written on behalf of his heirs (all eight of his children had died by 1846) making a claim to the land he was awarded for his service in the Revolution. There are also 20th century letters written to the Commissioner of Pensions, Washington, D.C. with typewritten replies that summarize what is in the handwritten 1847 correspondence. This is a tremendous genealogical resource for any descendants of Stephen Ashby's children: John, Enos, Daniel, Absolom, Stephen, Rosa Timmons, Lettice Neale and Annie Prather.

As noted in my Ashby Surname Saturday post, I am descended from his son Daniel Ashby, who also served in the Revolution.

Surname Saturday ~ Ashby of Virginia and Kentucky

Virginia (courtesy Wikipedia)

The earliest Ashby ancestor I know of is Thomas Ashby, who is believed to have been born about 1680 in England. His wife was Rose (or Rosanna) Berry and they had ten children. He settled in the colony of Virginia sometime between 1700 - 1710. He was known as Captain Thomas Ashby, as he served as a captain of the local militia. Thomas' will was written in April 1752 and was probated in August 1752. It is recorded on page 53 of the Frederick County (Virignia) Will Book 2, and is where his children are listed: John, Robert, Benjamin, Stephen, Thomas, Jr., Henry, Elizabeth, Sarah, Rose, and Ann.

Generation 2: Stephen Ashby was born in 1710 in Prince William County, Virginia. He served as a Captain in the Revolutionary War. For his service, he was granted what were known as bounty lands in Kentucky. When he died on May 19, 1797, he was a resident of Mercer County, Kentucky, though it is believed he died in Hopkins County. He is buried in the Old Ashby Cemetery in Hanson, Hopkins County, Kentucky. His Find A Grave memorial contains a great deal of information about him, including photographs of his original gravestone and a much later replacement one.

Different sources offer different names for his wives. The DAR Patriot index indicates that he had two wives named Elizabeth and one named Sarah. His will was written in May 1797 and is recorded on page 36 of the Mercer County (Kentucky) Will Book 2. In Captain Stephen Ashby's will, he refers to his "Military land" being left to his sons (Daniel, Absalom, John, Stephen, Enos).

Captain Stephen fathered at least eight children: John, Enos, Daniel, Rosa, Absolom, Stephen, Jr., Lettice, and Annie.

Treasure Chest Thursday ~ Printed 1937/38 Lysle Family Tree

This printed Lysle family tree is 8 3/4" by 17". The header reads:

LYSLE FAMILY TREE

Johannes de Insula, (1314-15 A. D.) (John of the Isles) L'Isle - de Lisle - Lisle - Lyle - Lysle.

The left footer reads:
Legend: M-Married; M____ Name of wife of husband not learned.
* ** *** Means first, second or third Wife or Husband.

The right footer reads:
Data collected, prepared and compiled by Mrs. Carrie P. Lysle Campsey, 3940 Brighton Road, N. S., Pittsburgh, Pa. [She is first cousin to my great-grandmother, Marguerite Lysle.]

This document is my source for the names of the descendants of James Lysle that I shared last week. The only dates on this document are for the wife of James Lysle: Mary Wilson (B-1763-D-1849). In fact, the only way I know the date this was printed is based on the fact that one of my aunts' names is not on the tree, as she was not yet born.